Bait
by Jade-Eyed-Jinchuriki
Summary: Organization 13 kidnapped Riku with the intention of luring Sora back into their clutches. Can Sora rescue him without falling into their hands himself? Rated M for violence, rape, yaoi, gore and other mature themes. You've been warned- don't like, don't read. Cover image by Vanitas4ever on DeviantArt.
1. The Rift

A.N. Hopefully this will be the only authors note I will need to write for this fanfic, as it is more a warning than a breifing of the plot. To those of you who are familiar with my fanfic "The Transition" I should warn you in advance that this is much darker, more graphic and considerably more messed up than the previously mentioned fic, it is not for the faint hearted but should promise to be a rewarding read if you can manage to survive the gory parts. It is my own take on what happened after the Mark of Mastery Exam in KH3D, if everything went horribly wrong. I am calling this fic "Bait" for reasons that should become quite obvious in a short time. I believe I have provided all the necessary warning, so Enjoy!

~Jade

"Bait" Chapter 1

"I think we found the place, the surge in dark energies is staggering, can you feel it?" An unusually pensive Lea asked his companion. Riku could sense it long before Lea noticed, as darkness had a strange affect on his senses, it stunk of every slimy, repulsive thing he could imagine, and the air was so thick with it here that he had to focus all his energy to keep from gagging on it.

They had been sent to try to discern what the source of this strange spike in darkness was, which the wizard Yen Sid could sense from much farther off than Riku even. Their suspicions were that a rift had formed in between worlds and the darkness was escaping from it, but nonetheless, they were warned to be on their guard- the least of their worries was being consumed by it, but there were other dangers as well.

"I feel it, but there's something...unusual about it." Riku replied. "Shouldn't this place be swarming with Heartless?"

"You have a point, it seems quiet here, too quiet." Lea answered. "Don't let your guard down, it could be a trap... we should check things out though, what do you say?"

"We'll split up, don't go too far apart from each other should something go wrong...Give a shout out if you discover anything!"

"Got it..."

The two kept a carefully measured distance from each other as they examined the area for the source of the dark energy. Oddly, there was nothing off about the location save the energy's presence, no broken structures, no heartless. It was as though the rift was trying to hide from them.

Suddenly the pair of them recoiled, Lea seemed to be knocked over by the force, Riku gagged and stumbled in place, he felt like he was going to be ill- there was a sudden strange surge in the energy as the true source of the rift revealed itself.

It was the whole of Organization 13, standing menacingly in a circle around them, all their faces obscured by the black hoods. Lea stared at them in shock, how did he not see the ambush coming.

The leader made a signal with his hand, and suddenly two of them attacked in quick unison. Lea managed to block one of their attacks with his keyblade, but the other proved too quick for Riku, seizing him by the throat and pinning him savagely against a wall before he could react. There was a sharp groan and a soft thud as his head made contact with a protrusion in the wall, Lea could have sworn he saw a spurt of blood where it struck. The force of the blow knocked Riku unconscious, leaving Lea alone to attempt negotiations.

"What are you doing here?" He called out wildly.

"I think you know very well why were here." one of the taller hooded figures responded. "It took all of us to generate enough dark energy to hold your attention. It was a ruse, we lured you here..."

The group summoned another wave of raw dark energy to get their point across, the force of which knocked Lea to the ground again.

"However it did not go exactly as planned. We were actually expecting the wizard to send Riku and _Sora_ out to investigate, We intended to grab Sora while Riku was distracted by the dark energies. but no matter, we can always use this scenario to our advantage..." He nodded to the cloaked figure who still had Riku pinned. He grabbed Riku and vanished with him in response. There was a bloodstain on the wall where the two of them disappeared, confirming Lea's suspicions that Riku had been hurt pretty badly.

"No, wait! What do you want with him?"

"He will do very nicely as bait, _you _on the other hand, can act as the messenger. Let Sora know if he does not give himself up willingly, his best friend will pay the price. You all should know our location quite well. You have one month." Then he vanished with the rest of the group, leaving a confused and horrified Lea behind.

"Wait, bring Riku back! Where are you taking him? What are you going to do to him!?" Lea screamed to thin air.

It was too late, Lea knew the Organization was already well out of earshot. He just hoped Yen Sid and the others could think of a plan to save Riku.

End of chapter one.


	2. Imprisoned

Bait Chapter 2

Riku woke to find himself lying alone in a windowless room. His whole body ached as though it had been beaten, and his head was spinning. Putting a hand to the back of his head, Riku found that his hair was caked with dried blood. Any effort to recollect the events of the past hours proved to be a challenge. He wondered if he had been injured badly enough to lose his memories, or had his captors drugged him.

As he slowly came back to awareness, he remembered that he had been sent to investigate a spike of dark energy, taking the novice Lea in tow as Sora was still away to resume training. The place seemed normal, no heartless or sources of destruction.

Then the true source of the dark spike had appeared: the Organization waiting in ambush. He had taken a blow to the head at some point during the battle, so there were no memories beyond then. What did they want this time? And then there was the question of Lea, was he safe, was he even alive, or was he locked up in this strange place too?

XXXXXXXX

Lea had returned to Yen Sid's tower as quickly as possible. It took a good hour to get there though as the place could not be accessed directly by dark corridor, meaning he had to stop at the nearest world instead and use a gummi ship to get there.

The place was more crowded than usual, with King Mickey and his two comrades there to aid in the training of Sora and Riku's friend Kairi. Sora himself had returned from his own training and was giving advice on summoning magic to the girl. The arrival of Lea, unaccompanied, had stirred up a number of curious looks from the occupants of the tower. They would find out soon enough, but for now he needed to talk to Yen Sid and the king alone.

"So they're making their move already. I just hope Riku isn't already at their mercy. " Mickey looked genuinely concerned as he spoke.

"There is one thing that bothers me though. Why did they give us so long?" Lea asked. "A full month would be more than enough time to plan a counterattack."

"I believe that is exactly what they have in mind, Lea." The old wizard replied. "They could be trying to draw out a final clash on their terms, they may be trying to discern how prepared we are. One thing is for sure, they still have their sights set on making Sora their final vessel. I most certainly will not send him out there alone."

"Should we tell him anyways? Even someone as simple as Sora would start to wonder why there's no news of his best friend after awhile."

"This is a tricky situation, we cant leave Sora in the dark like this, but, well Donald and Goofy can attest to his impulsiveness. He already has risked his life last time his friends were missing, and he probably would try it again if he found out Riku was in peril."

"Lea, tell him the truth, but inform him of out intentions. We are going to form a plan to rescue him, hopefully without drawing out an attack. Nonetheless, we must proceed with all your training. We must be prepared for anything."

XXXXXXXX

Hours passed and Riku's head was still sore and pounding, but his mind became clearer, confirming his belief that he had gotten a rather bad head injury during the ambush. He paced around the small room the Organization saw fit to give him, his heart pounding worse than his head. He didn't know why they wanted him alive and prayed that Organization 13 wasn't preparing to torture him for information.

And then there was Lea. Nobody had been by since he came to, so he didn't know anything about his whereabouts. But he knew if they really wanted him alive, someone would have to come by to feed him eventually. Maybe he could get some information out of them.

His theory was confirmed a short time later by the door of his small prison opening, a pouch containing food thrust in. He ran to the door before it closed.

"Wait!" He exclaimed. "Why am I here? Where are my friends?"

"Hell if I know..." A voice answered. "I strongly suggest you get away from that door, unless you want your legs broken for trying to escape!"

Riku jumped back, the door slamming shut before him. He could have predicted the answer. He remembered from previous encounters what negotiating with Organization 13 was like. Riku chuckled to himself, remembering an analogy Lea had said- it would easier to get Sora to recite Shakespeare.

The smile left his face just as quickly when memories of Sora, Kairi, Mickey, and the others drifted across his mind. He hoped they were safe, and, desperately as he wanted to get out of here, he hoped they weren't out there planning some harebrained rescue attempt that could endanger the lot of them.

End of Chapter 2.


	3. Diversionary Tactics

Bait, Chapter 3

Though Sora seemed to take the news of Riku's abduction well, his concern for his best friend became evident in his training. If they had been using keyblades, Lea and Mickey would've been sporting broken bones from their sparring sessions, as it was, the use of staves was leaving them all bruised at the end. They wouldn't allow Kairi anywhere near him as a result.

Every spare moment found them in Yen Sid's study trying to gather as much information on the Organization, its members, and its location as possible. They were going to attempt a diversionary tactic, to draw the full organization into battle while another group smuggled Riku out of their stronghold. However, their information was very limited, most of it centered on their stronghold, which most of them had ventured a fair distance into at some point.

Any attempt to get information out of Lea proved to be a failure, as most of his memories of his time in the organization had died at the same time his nobody Axel had. The only memories he seemed to retain were those of him and Sora's nobody Roxas.

"This is not going to be easy, is it?" a openly flustered Sora asked during one of these sessions. Lea looked mildly depressed, having just recounted the time when his nobody and Roxas parted ways. "The only information we seem to be getting on their members are on two who are no longer affiliated with them or even alive for that matter." Lea wanted to shout that he was very much alive, but instead he shot Sora a dirty look for that comment.

"And who do you intend to use to draw out the diversion?" Mickey asked. "You'd need to separate the group to be able to pull this off. You don't think they'd catch on if half the group was missing. And Sora obviously has to be there or there will be no point in going to begin with. It's him they want after all."

"They are not aware about Kairi..." Yen Sid answered simply.

"Wait...you want to send KAIRI out there?!" Mickey and Sora exclaimed together.

"She isnt ready to face that kind of danger!" Mickey retorted.

"I won't let her just walk into danger alone like that!" Sora exclaimed.

"You have nothing to fear on that matter." Yen Sid almost chuckled. "_I _will accompany Kairi on her part of the plan. They'd never expect all of us to come to one persons aid, would they?"

The entire group stared at the old wizard in a mixture of shock and reverence. There was no denying Yen Sid was powerful, but he wasn't young. And for him to risk himself like that to protect them all meant that he clearly had a soft spot for them.

"Well, do any of you object to this plan?"

Silence.

"Well, lets plan it out from here then."

XXXXXXXX

Riku had spent the past several days inspecting every inch of his small prison. It was windowless and adorned with only a small futon in one corner. There were two doors in the opposite wall, one leading to a tiny bathroom barely the size of a closet, also windowless.

The other door, however was what held his interest. It was what would ultimately lead to his freedom. The door was always locked from the outside save the two times each day someone would bring a measly supply of food and water to him, and their timing on this activity was almost predictable. He was seeking out a way to use that to his advantage.

They had taken most of his possessions from him after he was abducted, including a silver pocket watch Sora had given him as a birthday gift when he turned 13, but he didn't need that and only kept it as a memento. The lack of a timekeeper would throw most people off track, but Riku actually had an excellent sense of time, and therefore he could predict the exact minute someone would come and cast that measly pouch of food into the room. He had been forming a plan in his head for about three days on how he would make his escape.

All that was left to do was to go through with it.

End of Chapter 3


	4. The Escape

Bait, Chapter 4

Finding a blind spot in a small room wasn't as easy as one would think, yet Riku was pretty sure he had found a place that would insure he could slip out unnoticed.

The door was positioned right in a corner of the room, and it had a high enough ceiling for a person with particularly good wall climbing abilities to place himself right above the door. He intended to hide himself in this space, then leap out right as the door opened and run. He didn't care if people noticed his presence once he was outside the room, but he had to get out of there first.

He had spent most of that morning double-checking his plan, making sure the door was open wide enough and long enough for him to escape from it, making sure the area above the door wasn't booby-trapped in some way to deter any escape attempts. He found none, and was actually glad at the arrogance of the organization to think that their dungeon was inescapable.

By afternoon he had it all figured out, he would climb the wall by wedging himself between the corners, wait for the person bringing the afternoon meal to come, and swing out by the frame of the door, knocking the organization member aside and making a run for it.

XXXXXXXX

Back at Yen Sid's tower, the other members had been perfecting their own strategy, with Kairi of all people providing a valuable piece of information- Riku was most likely being held at the same place she was after Axel had abducted her. She had overheard another organization member mention that it was the only place that was equipped to hold prisoners.

Lea too had experienced a sudden burst of memory- the dungeon in their stronghold actually consisted of multiple levels, and someone with magical abilities like Riku was probably going to be held in one of the lower levels, as it had the most fortifications.

This had aided their strategy considerably, as they were now able to choose a place to draw out the diversion, one that would hopefully gave them the upper hand. All that had to be decided was when.

"What we should do is inform them of our acceptance of their challenge. Challenge them to duel us at the proposed place in one weeks time."

"A week?!"

"Yes, Sora, a week. I know you want to get Riku back sooner, but that is the least amount of time it can take to get the challenge and response. We can also use that time honing our own skills, giving us more of an advantage."

"I just hope he can hold out for another week." Sora sulked.

"You know, Sora, I think you forgot how strong Riku is." Kairi reassured him. "He endured a lot worse than this before. You'll see, the worst that's probably happened to him is he got bored senseless!"

XXXXXXXX

Riku had positioned himself in the place he had intended, his hands just above the frame of the door. The organization member in charge of bringing food due to arrive any minute. Sure enough, the door opened, a pouch of food thrust into the room.

Suddenly Riku burst out of the room, his feet making contact with the stomach of the organization member.

"Ugh!" The cloaked figure fell to his knees, doubled over, while Riku miscalculated his landing, tripping on one of many scrapped boards that littered the floor and falling flat on his back. He quickly righted himself and fled from the area.

The sound of the altercation had alerted the rest of the organization of his escape, and Riku was annoyed to find that they reacted quickly.

Black-clad figures came at him from both directions. He knew at this point escape was futile as the nearest figure seized him and pinned him against the wall. His hands were rough, Riku felt like he was being crushed under their force.

"Uggh, let go of me!" Riku cried defiantly. The hood had come off the organization member pinning him,revealing his face. Scarred face, an eye patch, the sadistic Xigbar. This could not end well at all.

"I think...not." Xigbar replied with a twisted smile on his face. "In fact, lets make it so you have no choice but to stay put until we decide what to do about you, my slippery little friend..."

Grabbing one of the boards, he savagely swung it at Riku's leg. Riku felt his bones break under the force of the blow, while the lingering sound of his snapping bones and agonized screams echoed around the dungeon. Riku's head was spinning, the pain was too intense- he was sure Xigbar had damaged a nerve as well.

He lifted his head, taking his focus off the pain long enough to utter one final curse at the man:

"You...are...pathetic..."

He blacked out and saw no more.

End of chapter 4.


	5. What Breaks a Spirit

Bait, Chapter 5

Xigbar roughly lifted and swung the unconscious Riku over his shoulder, carrying him back to the small room that had been his prison, unceremoniously dumping him on the futon. The only other person present kept his hood up, but Xigbar could only guess who it was by his height, and frankly,the kid got on his nerves.

"Don't just stand around, get someone else down here to guard the dungeons! We don't need a repeat of this escape attempt." The small figure ran off, leaving Xigbar alone with the prisoner.

Riku had not stirred at all since Xigbar broke his leg, the boy could very well have been dead if it wasn't for the telltale rise and fall of his chest.

He looked so vulnerable in his current state, so much different than the strong-willed, cocky boy who always stood sentinel at Sora's side. A low moan escaped the boy's lips, the sound like music to Xigbar. The temptation was unbearable, the sight of someone so young and vulnerable stirred at his fancy in strange and intense ways.

Memories of every spurned advance fueled his mood- He hadn't found release since Demyx died, and his desire drove him closer to the sleeping figure lying before him. He seized Riku and rolled him onto his stomach.

The movement had disturbed the injured leg, causing Riku to stir and moan softly. He came back to a state of semi-awareness to find that someone was fooling with _his clothes._ The action jolted him back to full consciousness, where he looked over his shoulder and saw Xigbar leaning over him, trying to undo the clasp of his belt.

Riku immediately shoved the man off of him and crawled as far away from him as he could, disturbing his injured leg more and causing him to roll over and gasp in pain.

"What... were you trying... to do?" He asked between gasps.

"If you honestly cant figure it out, you must be more dense than that Sora brat." Xigbar panted. "Its not exactly _easy _going through life with all this pent up frustration, and you just look like such a tempting target right now."

Riku stiffened when full realization set in.

"You wouldn't!"

Xigbar just strode over and clutched him in what felt like half embrace and half stranglehold.

"Relax, kiddo, I can make this enjoyable for you as well." He reached under the boy's shirt, caressing his bare chest, Xigbar was enjoying the feel of the soft yet muscular form beneath his hands. He seized one of his nipples between two fingers, rubbing it in what he thought was a seductive manner. He still had his gloves on, the rough fabric abrasive to the sensitive skin, making the sensation the complete opposite of pleasurable. Riku shuddered, the man's touch made his skin crawl to begin with.

"No... please..." He started to writhe and struggle against Xigbar's grip. Xigbar only responded by shoving Riku into a kneeling position, one hand pinning the boy's hands against the wall, the other proceeding to fumble with the clasp of his belt. He managed to strip the struggling boy naked from the waist down and moved on to disrobing himself.

Riku was in pain, he was pretty sure his leg was beyond repair at this point, and he could only sit in dread of what he knew was coming. He tried to relax, knowing that it would only be worse for him if he resisted.

"No...don't!" Xigbar took him roughly by the waist and entered him forcefully. The pain was unbearable- it felt as though he was being torn apart from the inside out- Xigbar had made no effort to prep him, so chances were he _was_ being torn apart from within. On top of that was his broken leg, which was disturbed by each movement, making the injury flare with pain nonstop. He managed to hold back his cries at first, but as Xigbar's movements became more frenzied, the pain intensified and an agonized cry escaped his lips with each thrust.

Riku shuddered and gagged when he felt something hot and thick spurt out of his body and down his legs. It was blood, and by the feel of it, a lot. It disturbed him, as he knew from other sources that even a virgin wouldn't bleed that much. Was Xigbar being rougher with him than he could feel, or was he deformed in some way?

Shortly after Riku's outcries began, Xigbar had reached over and taken the boy's member in his hand, attempting to cancel out the pain by pleasuring him. He still had those cursed gloves on. Each pull on him felt like sandpaper, digging itself into him, abrasing the delicate skin. It burned horribly, and soon Riku prayed for release from the agonizing sensation.

"NO...MORE...PLEASE!" He was shrieking, begging for an end to the torture by the time Xigbar felt his own release approaching. The man thought Riku's screams for mercy were actually cries of pleasure, fueling his desire all the more. Riku felt damaged and thoroughly violated by this point. It was painful and completely unnatural.

He choked and became violently ill on the ground at the same moment Xigbar finally climaxed, making sure he fully released inside the boy's body. He withdrew himself slowly and collapsed on top of him. Riku lay trembling in horror and disgust on the futon as Xigbar rose and put his clothing back on.

"You're bleeding..." Xigbar noted as he reached toward him and ran his still-gloved finger across one of the red tracks running down Riku's thigh. Riku shuddered, wishing the man would just stop touching him.

"That should go away in a couple hours, though I wouldn't be surprised if you wound up hurting for a couple of days." He leaned down so his mouth was level with Riku's ear: "Thanks for the good time" he whispered in a sickeningly sweet voice, earning another shudder from Riku. He then nipped at the boy's earlobe and walked out of the room, leaving a wounded and broken child lying behind him. Riku began to sob quietly into his pillow.

End of chapter 5.


	6. Mercy

Bait, Chapter 6

He had seen the disgustingly smug demeanor Xigbar let off upon leaving the room. He also knew about the man's equally disgusting sadistic mannerisms. He only hoped he hadn't gone too far with the prisoner, not when he wanted to try and gain his trust.

The kid had sparked his curiosity ever since he had been brought in, unconscious and with blood dripping from a gash on his head. He had lurked near the dungeons trying to find out as much about him as he could. Just who was he, and why did he look so much like him?

He knew he was only a creation of the organizations, intended to be an artificial vessel for Xeanhort's heart, yet they had not even bothered to give him an identity, calling him "fake" and "replica" when they had to address him. He had served the Organization loyally, but it wasn't enough to earn their respect.

He was ultimately abandoned and left to himself when it was discovered he was not a compatible vessel. Now the only key to learning his identity was with the prisoner. He had met the boy once before, in the sleeping worlds, and he doubted he would trust him now, remembering how startled the boy had been by the sight of his own form on a different individual.

Xigbar had barely reached the end of the corridor when the replica grabbed him and held him against the wall.

"What did you just do to the prisoner?" He asked angrily.

"That is no business of _yours, _fake..." Xigbar replied icily. "Though I'm not surprised you'd show concern for the little wretch. Dont worry, I'm sure he enjoyed it as much as I did."

The replica's eyes widened, a flash of rage crossed his heart as the full meaning sunk in.

"You didn't...just RAPE him?!" he exclaimed in disgust.

"Once again, that is not your business." Xigbar repeated, becoming more and more impatient with the brat treating him so brazenly.

"It is as much my business as it will be yours, you know the superior said to keep him alive and _uncorrupted._ He will have your head when he finds out what you did to him!"

"Say one word and I will end your worthless life _here and now_! Don't think I won't!"

Xigbar had been out to see the replica's head on a platter ever since he was brought into this world. He wouldn't put it past Xigbar to murder him in cold blood, even if it didn't settle well with Xemnas. Best to humor him than become his newest target.

"Leave him alone from now on and your secret will stay a secret."

"Fine, just make sure _you_ leave _me _alone from now on too!" Xigbar stormed off.

The replica walked off in the other direction, grabbing a spare blanket from one of the closets, then proceeding to the dungeons and the room the boy was locked in.

The boy was a wreck, dressed in a torn tunic and bloodstained shorts, the rest of his clothing cast aside to an empty corner of the small room. The left leg was swollen and lay at an odd angle, and he had sustained internal injuries from what Xigbar just did to him: he was still bleeding, even as he studied the boy a fresh spurt of blood tracked down his legs and pooled under them. He lay shivering on the futon, dead to the world, silver hair slightly obscuring wide, bloodshot eyes that suggested he had been crying.

The replica seized a knife from his cloak and cut a rag-sized length of cloth from the hem, dampening it with water from a bottle he had brought with him. He cautiously approached the boy and tried to clean the tear stains from his face. Naturally, he responded by bolting upright with a cry and backing against the wall, alarm evident on his face. The replica laid gentle hands on each of the boy's shoulders, easing him back onto the futon, and spoke to him as quietly as he could so he wouldn't startle him again.

"Easy, you'll only hurt yourself worse..." The replica approached him and tried again to clean the prisoners face, which he seemed not to resist this time around. "I'm not like the rest of them, I don't want to hurt you..." He lowered his hood, exposing his face to his counterpart as though to affirm his statement. The other boy gawked at him, the familiar startled expression starting to form on his face.

"You...you're..."

"I just want to know who you are, and in turn who I am." The other boy gawked at him again, confused. "What is your name?" The replica asked.

"I'm Riku. What do you mean 'who you are?'"

"Riku, an unusual name..." The replica had clearly been distracted by this new information.

"The organization never revealed anything about my history, they were quite content with calling me 'the fake' all the time."

"Sounds like a pretty lousy life- OWW, CAREFUL!"

The replica had proceeded to clean the blood from his lower body, which was still quite sore from recent events. Riku wouldn't have been surprised if he found bruises on his hips in a few days, considering how rough Xigbar had grabbed them. His leg was in the worst shape however, the slightest movement seemed to trigger flaring waves of pain to travel across the injury.

The Replica chuckled darkly. "Consider it a trade-off, since it was me you kicked in the stomach during that escape attempt." The Replica was trying to hide the fact that he was blushing and had to remind himself that what he was doing was not much different from bathing himself. Still, the idea of touching another boy so intimately, even to treat an injury, felt awkward.

"Hehe... sorry about that. Though to be fair I didn't know I was attacking an ally." Riku answered, wincing as the Replica's ministrations moved closer to the still-painful injury on his leg.

"Here, let me take care of that..."

The replica summoned a glow of green energy into his hand, which he placed over the injured leg. The sensation of his bones knitting themselves together like that were unpleasant but were not nearly as bad as the pain had been. He then moved his hand to his lower abdomen and healed the internal damage Xigbar had caused.

"There, I wouldn't use put too much strain on the leg for a few days, but at least it shouldn't cause you any more pain.

"Wait, you mean I could have summoned magic in here the whole time!?" Riku asked in indignation.

"Not exactly, they've been drugging your food, suppressing your powers. Even without the drugs, you've just been injured and are clearly in no shape to use magic now. If you could manage to summon even a mild spell in your current state, i'd be impressed." the replica replied apologetically.

Riku stared at his counterpart, unsure if he had just insulted him or warned him.

"But you shouldn't have need to use it. I made a deal with Xigbar, he shouldn't bother you again, not if he values his life." He draped the blanket he brought over Riku's shoulders and stood up. "Just leave everything to me." He turned and left the room.

_This is worse than I thought. _The replica thought to had been disturbed by what he witnessed, not just by the broken leg and rape injuries, but by the fact that Riku was showing signs of undernourishment. The kid's skin was cold and clammy to the touch, and he could easily make out the bones in his chest and hips while he performed his ministrations. They clearly weren't feeding him enough. How he had not noticed before now? He had been the one in charge of bringing him food.

Sadly, the rules of living and working with the Organization made it impossible to smuggle more food to him.

_The kid is in pretty bad shape right now as it is,_ The Replica thought to himself._ If his friends don't pull through for him soon, things could get even worse in the coming days. The conditions the Organization are subjecting him to, they make it easy for exposure sickness to set in..._

End of Chapter 6.


	7. Musings

Bait, Chapter 7

_"Relax, kiddo, I can make this enjoyable for you as well..."_

_The man's touch felt like slime against his bare skin, the sensations were like sparks running across every inch of him, invading his very thoughts. Riku's body twitched with each caress, making Xigbar believe he was actually enjoying the action. He made to undo the boy's belt, but Riku still wasn't being cooperative. He seized him by both wrists, pinning them to the wall. He was convinced the strength of the man's grip had broken his hands. He proceeded to strip the boy from the waist down._

_"No, please..." _

_"Quiet!" He seized Riku by the waist and began to enter him..._

"NO!" Riku bolted upright on the futon, drenched in cold sweat and trembling violently. He had this nightmare every night since Xigbar raped him, had been forced to relive the sadistic man's violation of his body. If he hadn't seen the copy of himself propped against the opposite wall, dozing, he would've forgotten that he now had a protector and would be in constant fear that Xigbar would be back to have his way with him again.

He was still in pain despite the Replica's ministrations, every movement sent dull waves of it across his lower body. He rolled up his right pant leg gingerly, wincing as he grazed his calf- though it was no longer broken, a large bruise had formed on Riku's leg where Xigbar struck him. He used his own cold hands to cover the bruise, reducing the swelling and easing the pain a little.

The replica stirred slightly, muttering something inaudible to Riku's ears. Riku pulled his blanket tighter around his body and tried to settle back into sleep, an action that was easier said than done as thoughts began to chase themselves around his head: Memories of Xigbar's twisted violation of him, worries about Sora and the others-were they all safe right now? Most pressing on his mind was curiosity about his now constant companion.

The replica had spent most of his time in the dungeon to insure that Xigbar nor any other organization member would allow him to come to harm, often staying right there in this small room with him. Riku was more than certain this was not the same replica that had antagonized him and Sora in Castle Oblivion almost two years ago, as he had witnessed the death of that replica firsthand. Riku had come to know that he had been created to be Xehanort's 13th vessel, but had ultimately been abandoned as he kept rejecting the fragment of Xehanort's heart, nearly dying in the last attempt when the dark presence fought back and tore away most of his mana and life force as it left his body.

He had been left to himself after that, often being shunned and pushed aside by the organization. He had not even been given an identity, when anyone had to address him they just called him "Fake" or "Replica," since he could not even remember his own name. Any memories he did have were blurry and fragmented, most of them too broken for him to make any sense of. He had only met Riku once before, in an incident they both could remember vividly.

Knowing he would never be able to get to sleep any time soon, Riku sat up and allowed his mind to wander, remembering the replica's tale and point of view on that meeting.

_The replica had been sent to the sleeping worlds on a mission to gather data on two Keyblade wielders who currently dwelled there. His mission had somehow led him inside the belly of a great whale, where one of his targets had wound up. He had decided to lure the Keyblade wielder to him by taking an enchanted wooden puppet under his wing._

_The plan had worked too well, as he soon encountered a young man bearing a keyblade that suggested it was a dragon's wing joined with a dove's-a young man that looked disturbingly like him._

_"Who are you?" he had asked. The replica had lowered his hood in response. The look on Riku's face was unforgettable, his face holding a look of shock, but his eyes told a different tale. The pain of a hundred memories seemed to flash across those brilliant cyan eyes in one instant, pain he suddenly felt as his own. He opened a dark corridor and escaped after that, unable to bear that look any longer._

Riku remembered feeling such pain during that encounter, all those conflicting memories and emotions. It reminded him so much of what he had done on that first adventure so long ago, fueled by rage, lust for power, and the one thing that still tied his heart to light- the desire to revive Kairi. Riku was in love with Kairi then, and though it is not as strong, he still does, but he didn't consider himself worthy then and considers himself less worthy now.

Then there was the memory of the other replica, the poor fool who's mind had been warped into thinking the key to having his own identity was in eliminating him. He had ended that being's life personally, when he could have convinced him that he was already his own unique entity, like Sora did with Roxas.

Then there was this replica who slept on, curled up under the rough but warm fabric of the Organization's cloak. Yes, Riku was convinced this replica was different, merciful, as though he had been crafted from the light within Riku's heart. He wondered if he could save him from the wretched, lonely life the Organization had given him.

End of Chapter 7.


	8. A New Complication

Bait, Chapter 8

The replica had woken up to the sound of a horrible choking cry. Cursing himself for dozing off, he looked around the room to investigate. No threats met his gaze, only the sight of Riku thrashing on the ground. He seemed to be trapped in a nightmare. Occasionally a pleading exclamation or cry of "No!" or "Stop!" would break through the fits-he kept begging someone to leave him alone, and the replica could very well guess who he was struggling against in the nightmare.

"Riku... RIKU, you're safe, wake up!" The replica shook him gently and took note that he was burning up, he could feel the heat from inches away. "Come on, you can fight this!" He shook him harder, but the only response he managed to get was a low moan of "nooo..." from the boy's lips.

_This is bad... _the replica thought to himself. _I can't get him to wake up! How long had I dozed off for, he can't have gotten this sick in a mere couple of hours, could he? _He tried again to get Riku to wake up, but to no avail. He was clearly in the clutches of delirium. If he could just cool him down a bit he might at least calm down. He remembered the cloth he had cast aside a couple days ago. Retrieving it from beside the futon, he cleaned and dampened it with water from the bottle he always carried, then proceeded to hold it against Riku's face.

The action had the desired effect, Riku soon settled down and opened his eyes slightly.

"Hey, you looked like you were having quite a nightmare. Are you alright?" The replica asked him in concern. Riku just looked him directly in the eyes and nodded slightly. The boy's eyes were dimmed by the fever, and the replica knew he was in worse condition than he was leading on. He could see it, he was trembling from a combination of weakness and cold- even though his fever was so high, the chill of the dungeon still broke through it. He could also make out a strange rumbling sound with his every intake of breath. He was wheezing.

It was a typical early symptom, he had witnessed this same deterioration in other prisoners before. The cold air of the dungeon paired with the lack of natural light made perfect conditions for anyone who dwelled down here too long to develop pneumonia or some other sickness brought on by exposure. It was only a matter of time before the choking fits began, followed by a slow and miserable deterioration as the symptoms worsened and took their toll. He desperately wished he could get him out of this place, but doing so would only get them both killed.

Not that it mattered to Riku. Without medicine or better conditions, the sickness would eventually kill him off anyways.

He desperately hoped Riku's friends would be here for him soon.

XXXXXXXX

"So we set out tomorrow..." Lea was seated beside Sora on one of the windowsills in Yen Sid's tower. He had made a brief venture into a nearby world to purchase some sea-salt ice cream in an effort to lift the boy's spirits- it was one of the few things that would cheer Roxas up when he was like this- as Lea had never seen Sora this crestfallen before. He usually had a idiotically cheerful demeanor. Today he looked like he had borne a burden on level with Atlas.

"Hey, everything's gonna be fine, you'll see. It's like Kairi keeps telling you, Riku's a strong kid, he'll be fine, he'll probably be wondering what took us so long." Lea shot Sora an encouraging smile, which he didn't return.

"I know, I just keep getting this feeling...like you know something is going to go horribly wrong and you can't stop it. I keep telling myself to prepare for the unthinkable. Riku's been their prisoner for nearly three weeks now, who knows what they're doing to him, what they've already done to him."

"Listen to me Sora. It's a grim thought, but its one that we can hold out on. They are using him as bait to lure _you _to them. They are a cruel bunch, but they are not stupid. They know all too well that a deal _they _set would be null and void if their bargaining chip gets damaged. At least hold onto the hope that they wont kill him while _you're _out of their grasp. And we have it planned so that you both get out of there safe."

"Okay, I'll stick by your logic, I just hope its sound."

Lea chuckled. "If it isn't, you have my permission to beat me senseless after this is all over."

He actually managed to get a small smile from Sora in response.

"I'll hold you to it."

End of Chapter 8.


	9. My name is Riku!

Bait, Chapter 9

The replica rushed between rooms in the organizations stronghold, intent on finding an Elixir among one of the other members' possessions He had none of them in possession himself, and they were only given out at the beginning of a particularly long or dangerous missions. But some of the more scheming members could be counted on to hoard the more valuable items. He wouldn't normally even think of stealing from those particular members- if he was caught he was almost guaranteed to become someones knife sharpener- but the need was just too great this time.

Riku's condition was deteriorating fast, his fever had gotten higher during the night. Nothing could bring him out of the delirium fueled dreams now save the occasional choking fit. He wished there was something stronger on hand, but those sort of medicines were kept under lock and key. Elixir was all he could use- it wouldn't cure him, but it would at least give him enough strength to fight the sickness a little longer.

He had taken extra care to insure nobody was following him as he entered the next room. Decoration was forbidden, but Xigbar had still somehow managed to leave evidence of his personality. The bed was unmade, the table beside it stacked with books about gun maintenance and- unsurprisingly- bondage hentai.

He managed to find what he was looking for on one of the shelves in the wardrobe-a wooden box filled with vials of glowing green liquid. He pilfered one of the vials and made absolutely sure there was no evidence of the theft.

"What are you doing in here!" The replica froze as he realized who the owner of the voice was.

"Xigbar!"

"Are you deaf, fake? WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY ROOM?" The man practically screamed those last words as he approached the replica and seized him roughly by the wrist, slapping his hand until he released the vial in his closed fist. There was a shrill crashing sound as the vial broke at his feet, splashing its contents on both of them.

"Were you trying to steal from me, you vile little replica?"

"No, i wasn't! I was going to replace it...I swear."

"LIAR! What business did you have using an Elixir anyway? Going to use it on the little bastard in the dungeon?" The replica couldn't meet his gaze, knowing the man had figured out everything. "TALK, you FAKE!" Xigbar slapped the replica across the face, sending him spinning into the wardrobe.

The replica struck it hard enough to burst it open and scatter its contents. He lifted himself from the wreckage of the furniture and glared at Xigbar, blinking as blood flowed in his eye from a gash above his eyebrow. Even in his state there was no mistaking the defiance in the replica's face.

"That's not my name..."

"What did you just say?"

"I said that's not my name..." The replica stood up straighter, he lifted and pressed one hand to his cheek, a bruise beginning to form where Xigbar had struck him. "I may be a replica, but I most certainly am not _fake._ I am real, I have a name, and I have an identity."

Xigbar backed against the wall, seizing a dagger off the table that sat against it.

"You don't even know it!"

"I do in fact..." The replica held his hand out before him, as though trying to ward off an invisible blow.

"My name is Riku!"

Suddenly a weapon materialized in his hand, one he had never wielded but had seen once before- during that encounter in the belly of the whale. He stared at it in disbelief.

"A... Keyblade?"

He never got a chance to use it.

Xigbar had used the replica's moment of stunned shock to make his move. Rushing forward, he shoved the keyblade aside and plunged the dagger deep into the replica's stomach. The replica choked, bringing up a mouthful of blood and stared at Xigbar in wide-eyed disbelief. He felt a strange sensation besides the pain of the wound, as though the blade itself was eating away at his energy.

"What, this feeling...why?"

"You have been a constant thorn in my side ever since Xemnas ordered your creation. Why he allowed your worthless hide to be left alive after your...failure as a dark vessel still confuses the hell out of me. You've been nothing but dead space ever since."

The replica felt himself getting weaker. He let out a shaky gasp and fell to his knees.

"Oh, I see the effects are starting to sink in. You're feeling a bit weak right now, aren't you? This is no ordinary dagger. It is made of metal that has had a special kind of dark magic folded into it. As long as even a fragment of the metal stays in your body, it will slowly eat away at your energy, and ultimately your life force. I'd say you have about a week at most, but since i'm in a rather generous mood..." He seized the replica by the hair, pulling his head back and exposing his neck. "...I think I'll cut your suffering short" He yanked the dagger from the replica's body and slit his throat with it.

The replica let out a gurgling cry. Xigbar released him, allowing him to fall face-down into a puddle of his own blood. He lowered his mouth to the dying boy's ear. Even in his dying state, the Replica couldn't help but become enraged at his words.

"Take comfort in knowing you at least died doing something useful. I'd been anxious to find a guinea pig to try out that dagger on, you just happened to be there at the right time. Have a nice afterlife, fake." He stayed there, gloating, reveling in the boy's death throes until the Replica let out one last shaky breath, his body going still in the dark puddle of blood. Then he stood up, flashed the Replica's body a filthy smirk, and left the room.

End of Chapter 9.


	10. Hostage

Bait, Chapter 10

The group had decided to land their gummi ship a distance away from the proposed site, where they could split up without drawing suspicion.

"Do you remember this place, Kairi?" Yen Sid whispered to the girl. She looked visibly shaken, memories of the cold room in the dungeon surfacing in painfully vivid quality. She had not been there nearly as long as Riku, but it was still not pleasant.

"Yes."

"I know the memory is painful, but you need to do this, you're the only one who knows the way." Yen Sid gazed intently at her. "Don't be afraid, I'll be with you the whole time."

"I know. Thank you, master..."

"You guys done being all touchy-feely?" An annoyed Lea asked. "We kind of have a mission to begin here..." Sora shot him a dirty look- how brazen did you have to be to speak to Yen Sid like that?

"Ok, you remember what to do... Kairi and I will set out first. Give us a half hour, then go to the battle site."

XXXXXXXX

It didn't take the rest of the organization long to discover the Riku replica's body in Xigbar's chambers. Naturally, suspicion fell on him- they all know he had a personal vendetta against the replica, and for a rather stupid reason.

Xemnas had ordered his creation to replace Demyx, but unlike Demyx, the replica would not let Xigbar turn him into his new fuck toy. Xigbar had turned into a ticking time bomb of pent up frustration ever since and seemed more unstable than ever. That was saying a lot since Xigbar had always been a sadistic pervert.

Xemnas had ordered them to find Xigbar and have him questioned. Their search for him had been cut short though, as word had got to them that Sora and his companions were waiting to answer their challenge.

XXXXXXXX

Sora, Lea, Mickey, Donald and Goofy stood in the courtyard in front of the organization's stronghold. The organization had yet to arrive for the proposed battle, but they still had five minutes to meet them.

"You think they're waiting for the exact moment to show up?" Sora asked Lea.

"Its almost a guarantee, they are probably looking for the most intimidating method of arrival right now, considering their egos." Lea replied darkly.

As though in response to Lea's remark, a group of cloaked figures materialized in a circle around them.

"9...10...11 Wait, one of you is missing!" Mickey exclaimed.

"Yes, it seems one of our members has turned on us. He will be found and get what he deserves soon enough, but there were more...pressing matters to attend to right now."

"But he could be anywhere right now! How do you know he's not out trying to sabotage your plan?" Sora screamed at them.

"That doesn't matter any more. We have who we want right here in front of us!"

"You don't mean...oh no!" The faces of the whole group darkened as the realization set in. Then Sora jumped forward with a cry of alarm.

"Riku, Kairi!" He turned and bolted toward where Kairi had gone a short while before, followed closely by the rest of the group trying in vain to get him to stay put.

XXXXXXXX

"Master, look, one of the doors have a light showing under it, you don't think someone is in there right now?"

"Look, Kairi, But be careful." the old man answered.

She ran toward the room, where a grim sight met her. Riku was in there, sure enough, but something was horribly wrong with him. He was barely conscious, his breathing slow and labored, broken by an occasional short, choking cough. Sometimes he would lift his arm in a feeble attempt to ward off an unseen attack, letting out weak, pleading moans. He was delirious. She ran to his side with a cry of grief.

"Riku! Oh gods, he's burning up! Master, is there anything we can do for him?"

"Not here, but we can tend to him once we get him to the gummi ship." The old man calmly walked to his side and laid a gentle hand on Riku's forehead. Riku stirred, looking at Yen Sid with dim eyes. He muttered something that sounded almost like "Sora..."

"Shhh, save your strength. He's waiting for you, Riku." Yen Sid whispered gently. "But we have to get you out of here first."

"Not so fast..." The unexpected voice made them both jump and turn to investigate.

"Xigbar! Why are you here, shouldn't you be in battle with the rest of the organization right now?"

"Nah, too boring, not when i can be having a little fun with Sora's closest comrades..." He grinned evilly. "I was expecting to just find Riku in here, but to find the brat's master and girlfriend with him only sweetens the deal." He pulled a dagger from his robes and started fiddling with the handle, spinning it between gloved hands.

He had intended to murder Riku while the rest of the organization was off fighting Sora and the others, but the replica got in his way and stole valuable time, he doubted he would be able to finish the brat properly now. He was willing to do anything to slow the forging of the X-blade; though he held part of Xeanhort, he hated the notion of his possessing him fully and having unaltered access to his thoughts and memories. He may have been a nobody, but he had enough shame to know the acts he had committed throughout his time with the Organization were immoral, and he wanted nobody to learn of them and have him turned into a dusk for it.

Though they weren't one of Xeanhort's seven lights like Riku was, seeing Kairi and Yen Sid there with him seemed like a good way to get even with Sora for killing Demyx and humiliating him in a later battle.

"I guess the real question is where do I begin: Sora's best friend..." He pointed the dagger at Riku. "His girlfriend..." He turned it toward Kairi, who's eyes widened. "Or his teacher?" He finally turned the dagger toward Yen Sid, who remained impassive.

"I think I will warm up a bit and take the one who wont fight back." Shoving Kairi and Yen Sid aside, he grabbed Riku and held the dagger to his throat. The boy put up no fight, feeling too weak and sick to care.

"Riku..." Kairi whispered in horror.

"LET THEM GO!" Kairi's eyes got even wider at the voice.

Xigbar turned and grinned evilly at the new opponent.

"SORA!" Kairi cried.

"Well, it seems the brat finally caught on to me. I thought I'd do the organization a favor and...eliminate the competition for them." The blade in his hand flashed menacingly as he pressed it harder into Riku's neck. A small bead of blood rolled off the edge of it. Sora growled a warning at him.

"But I think I have a better idea with him now. So what say you Sora? Wanna play a little game? If you want me to let them go, you have to meet me in combat. And to show you im not playing around..." He plunged the dagger into Riku's body. There was a soft groan from Riku and an awful _shunk_ noise as the blade pierced his flesh.

"NOOO! RIKU!" Sora charged at Xigbar with a shriek of rage.

"Now that's what I had in mind!" Xigbar exclaimed in triumph as he brutally threw Riku against a wall. Sora ran forward and caught him before he hit it. He lifted him into a sitting position and cradled him gently, putting pressure on the wound with his hand, taking care not to nudge the hilt of the dagger. Sora could tell how bad his condition was simply by the pained expression on his face, and he didn't want to cause him any more pain.

"Riku..."

_They're going to pay for this..._

"Master, get Kairi and Riku out of here!"

"Sora... don't... do this..." Riku pleaded weakly.

"No, Sora!" Kairi cried in desperation.

"I'm going to be fine, you'll see!" Sora gave Riku's hand a reassuring squeeze as he looked at Kairi, flashing her his most encouraging smile, which was hard to do considering how much his heart ached for his friend right now. Yen Sid took Riku from Sora's arms and nodded to Kairi. The three of them left the room, Sora watching their retreat carefully before Xigbar seized Sora by the collar and dragged him into the deepest part of the dungeon. He roughly threw him into the center of the dark cavern.

"There, now that we have a little more space, shall we begin?"

End of Chapter 10


	11. Triage

A.N. This is only a mention to give credit where credit is due. An image inspired one of the scenes in chapter 10 and is a driving force behind the next few chapters. It is a model edit titled "Riku is Dead" done by DeviantART user Vanitas4ever. Don't worry, the creator is aware that i'm using their work, and actually gave me permission to do so. Once again, thank you to Vanitas4ever and to all the others who are here to support this fic and help make it great. Ok, that out of the way, back to the story.

Bait, Chapter 11

Sora stared at the ruthless man with a seething expression. How much he wanted to hurt him, to inflict ten times the pain he had forced Riku and himself to endure.

"Why... WHY DID YOU DO THAT TO HIM?! Do you even think of your own side? Riku was one of the seven lights! If he dies, you and your organization's plan will backfire!"

"That is exactly what I had in mind..." Xigbar answered icily. "I don't want the X-blade to be forged!"

"What?" Sora replied in shock. "But I thought you were already half Xeanhort... So shouldn't you share his ambition?"

"I don't want to be fully possessed, don't you get it!"

"You didn't seem to mind the prospect of possession all those months ago!"

"Things have changed! I've done things that are unforgivable even by our standards! They see what's in my mind and, I'll be rejected! Turned into a Dusk! It's a worse fate than being taken over!"

_For someone who releases such a cunning aura, this guy doesn't think things through..._ Sora thought in disbelief.

"I don't think corruption should matter... "

"I broke our rules! Even as recently as the span of time your precious Riku has been here!"

Sora's eyes widened, then narrowed at what Xigbar's remark implied. His next words dripped with fury.

"What else did you do to him?!" He snarled.

"You'll have to pry THAT answer from my cold, dead, hands!" Xigbar answered, summoning his weapons.

XXXXXXXX

"Master, can't we remove the blade? I think it's hurting him!" an alarmed Kairi asked.

They had to use the largest gummi ship they had, the full group of people was too large for a smaller and faster ship, and now with one extra member on board who happened to be wounded, they were going to need the space. Luckily the ship was meant for longer journeys and came equipped with a barracks. The small group was now congregated in that room, with Riku lying on one of the lower bunks.

Kairi was seated at the bedside holding a damp cloth to his face and whispering soothingly into his ear. Occasionally he would grab at the hilt protruding from his chest and cry out weakly every time his hand struck it. She ultimately had to grab his hands and hold them down at his sides to keep him from hurting himself worse, while Riku shuddered with every fresh wave of pain.

"I'm sorry Kairi, but the blade is in too deep to do that. We can't risk him bleeding to death if it struck something vital. It's best to do that in a place better equipped to handle such a situation. I can at least give him something to ease the pain for now."

He searched through the cabinet meant for emergency supplies on the other end of the room, where he retrieved a small vial containing a clear, colorless liquid, which he applied a single drop directly into his wound. The stuff must have been potent, because even that small amount was enough to help Riku settle down and quickly fall into a deep sleep. Kairi sighed in relief.

"I hope Sora and the others get out of there okay." Kairi said quietly.

Yen Sid looked at Kairi and gave a nod toward the ship's cockpit, where the communication center was. He had been in there talking to the rest of their small party moments earlier.

"Lea just got back to me, he managed to get Sora out of there, claims that he took a blow to the head and passed out, but seems fine otherwise."

"Thank goodness Lea got to him!" Kairi half screamed. "That awful man would've killed him, he seems a ruthless enough fighter. He stabbed Riku, who was defenseless!" Yen Sid held out a hand, signaling her to calm down.

"Not so, from what Lea was describing, it seems Sora defeated him and got struck by debris from his own magic. It would be a humorous thought if the situation wasn't so grim, knowing the type of fighter Sora is..."

The thought actually chilled Kairi, who remembered the cold fury Sora was in when the Organization member challenged him. He must have lost control of his powers.

Donald, Goofy and Mickey barged into the room at exactly that moment, each showing different levels of alarm at the sight sitting before them. Mickey ran straight to Riku and took his hand, staring at Yen Sid with a questioning look.

"They told us he wouldn't come to harm!" The mouse exclaimed angrily. "What happened?"

The old man explained everything that had happened in the past hour, right to the moment that Xigbar stabbed Riku. With almost cruelly ironic timing, Lea arrived carrying an unconscious Sora on his back. Donald shrieked his name and ran to his side, with Goofy and Kairi close behind him.

"Calm down, He's just knocked out!" Lea exclaimed in exasperation as Yen Sid strode past them all and carefully examined him, paying attention not to the swollen lump on his head, but to the way his body responded to certain actions. He looked up after a few minutes with an encouraging look on his face.

"There seems to be no sign of any brain injuries, though he will probably have a nasty headache for a few days, and that wont be hard to treat. He should wake up in a few hours- I'd keep an eye on him for some time though in case something not so detectable shows up later on."

"I hope any memory of that deal I made with him got knocked out of his head," Lea said sourly as he spied the injured Riku lying on the other bunk. "I told him he could beat me senseless if Riku had come to any harm..."

"Master?" The voice was so faint it was almost missed by those present. The sudden increase of activity had brought Riku back to consciousness. Yen Sid knelt at his side, looking at him intently.

"What is it, Riku?"

"Sora... I need... to see him. I need to know... he's safe..."

He was so weak he was having difficulty making that simple statement. Yen Sid carried the still-unconscious Sora to Riku's side, carefully laying him beside him on the bunk so he wouldn't nudge the knife that was still protruding from Riku's chest. Riku lifted a shaking hand to Sora's hair, gently stroking the soft brown spikes. Sora let out a soft moan and called out in his sleep.

"Ri-ku..."

"Shhhh... I'm... right here... Sora... We're both... safe..." Riku fell asleep as he continued to stroke the younger boy's hair, comforted by the knowledge that his best friend was safe.

XXXXXXXX

Though they had intended to return to Yen Sid's tower, Mickey suggested that they go to Disney castle instead, claiming it was closer and better equipped to tend to Sora and Riku. The trip, though cut by several hours, still seemed to take forever due to the tension that filled every crevice of the gummi ship.

The entire group practically fell out of the gummi ship when they arrived. Lea and Yen Sid carried the injured while Mickey led them to rooms within the castle. Sora had been taken to the nearest room they could find, but with Kairi and Yen Sid insisting that Riku be taken to a warm and well lit area, they had to find a room near the castle courtyard, where the sun was always guaranteed to get in during every moment of daylight.

The medicine Yen Sid had given Riku in the gummi ship hours earlier was starting to wear off, he was beginning to tremble from the pain by the time he was finally settled on the soft bed in the room. Yen Sid stood up, looking away from his young charge briefly as he turned to Mickey.

"Mickey, I'll need you to go tend to Sora, and take Kairi with you, she can use this opportunity to learn some basic healing magic."

"Master, can't I learn that at a later time. I do want to be there for both of them, but Riku's condition is worse right now!"

Yen Sid stared at the girl with a look that was both piercing and sympathetic. It chilled her to the bone.

"Kairi, you can _still_ be there for him, it would be a noble gesture to aid the one Riku got wounded trying to protect."

She stared at the whole group, clearly conflicted. Yen Sid knelt at her side, looking at her intently.

"Trust me, I wont let anything happen to Riku."

Those last words gave Kairi enough resolve to turn away from the room and follow the king to Sora's bedroom.

"Master, Kairi has already mastered Curaga, I don't thank she needs any more training, and I thought you said Sora's injuries weren't serious. So why did you just send two people over to care for him?" a confused Lea asked.

"Sora, Kairi and Mickey hold a particularly strong bond with Riku, but Sora's unconscious and couldn't see or hear this anyway. But Mickey and Kairi, I couldn't let those two witness this, it would break their spirits. As deeply as this blade is lodged in his body, it wont be easy to remove it, and impossible to do it painlessly. There is no denying it now, Riku's in for a rough time." The old wizard said grimly.

End of Chapter 11


	12. Don't give up

Bait chapter 12.

A strong green glow issued from Mickey's hand as he placed it over the lump on Sora's head. Sora stirred slightly, but did not wake. The mouse checked his work and smiled, satisfied with what he had done.

"How did you do that? I can't cast curaga without my keyblade, but you just made it form in your hand." Kairi asked, impressed.

"Years of practice." The mouse replied with a glint in his eyes. "You will be able to learn it for yourself too, but for now, just channel your magic through the keyblade. I'm impressed with your progress actually. It took even Sora and Riku several months to master curaga, took me almost two years!" Kairi beamed at the king's praise.

Then it happened, the sound of a drawn-out, agonized scream echoed through the halls and had made its way to both Mickey and Kairi's ears. The mouse lowered his head sadly. Tears sprang to Kairi's eyes.

"Riku!" she cried in grief. "What are they doing to him? He sounds like he's in so much pain right now!"

XXXXXXXX

Though the room was well-lit as per Yen Sid's instructions, there was a serious design flaw. It's location plus the sheer number of windows in it meant that anyone could hear what was happening within a mile's radius of the area.

Though he wanted to be gentle to the sick boy lying before him, the old man thought it would be best if the blade was removed quickly, before any infection could be introduced- the child was already fighting off some form of exposure. He had seized the blade by the hilt and yanked it straight out, causing Riku to throw his head back and scream in agony.

Sure enough, the wound started to bleed heavily within seconds of the blades removal. Yen Sid slowed the bleeding with a simple cure spell and had Lea get something from another room, while he removed Riku's shirt so he could clean and examine the wound. Riku fought against the wizard's actions, he was still in severe pain despite the blade being out of his body: he had broken out in a cold sweat and was hyperventilating.

"Stay with me, Riku..." Yen Sid whispered in a gentle voice. He grabbed one of the potions he had brought from the gummi ship, the same colorless one he had used to ease Riku's pain hours earlier, and placed another drop directly in the wound. Though it still eased the pain, it was apparent that this time it wasn't enough. Riku winced and cried out repeatedly as the old wizard cleaned away the blood and probed the wound with his fingers, trying to discern the extent of the damage.

"The wound is deep, but he was lucky..." Yen Sid said as he worked, Donald and Goofy were still in the room with him, trying their best to comfort Riku through the ordeal, both looking up to the old wizard for any news. "If the blade had struck him even a little higher, it would have pierced his lung. It also seemed to _just _miss any major veins or arteries." The other two sighed, relief that he wasn't vitally wounded, but still concerned.

Lea returned, carrying several rolled bandages, which Yen Sid used to pack and bind the wound. He proceeded to undress the boy, examining his whole body and trying to determine exactly what he had been through during his confinement, as Riku was no longer awake to tell this tale himself. There was a half-healed wound on the back of his head and a large dark bruise on his right leg, suggesting he had taken a blow to it at some point during his confinement.

Though they weren't the most life threatening, the last injuries were the most unsettling. Yen Sid winced sympathetically as he uncovered the sores, scars and half-healed lacerations on the boy's nether regions.

_What went on in that dungeon that caused those injuries? _Yen Sid prayed they weren't the end result of some sadistic torture, or worse, rape.

Riku cried out and fought against the intrusion as Yen Sid applied more of the painkilling medicine to these injuries, and Yen Sid thought he could hear a hint of pleading for mercy in the boy's outcries. He spoke reassuringly to Riku as he worked, though unsure if he could even be reached in his current state. He then turned his attention to the dagger he had just pulled from Riku's body, studying every inch of it from hilt to point. He looked up with a grim expression on his face.

"The blade is broken near the tip, it could just be a flaw in the design, but nothing is certain. There is a strong possibility that a shard of the blade is still buried in Riku's body, deeply, as I couldn't feel it while examining him. That alone wouldn't be a major cause for concern, if it wasn't for the fact that I can feel dark magic radiating from the blade."

Alarm shot across the faces of the other people present.

"I don't know what it could do to him, but it obviously can't be good. I won't force him to endure the pain of another procedure today, but if there is a shard still inside him, we need to get it out as soon as possible."

XXXXXXXX

Sora finally woke up several hours later to find that there was a grim mood all around. Word had gotten out that there was potentially a fragment of a blade infected with an unknown dark magic still in Riku's body. Sora and Kairi had spent most of their time at Riku's side ever since.

The boy was lying on a small but soft bed, wearing nothing but a pair of dark pajama pants and the tight gauze that bound his wound. He looked awful, so pale he almost blended into the sheets he lay upon, bones clearly visible on the parts of his chest that weren't wrapped in bandages, scars from previous battles standing out in greater relief. Sora winced when he saw the awful jagged burn scar that ran down most of his left side, a memento he got from that fight against Xemnas. His face had the same shrunken appearance that his body had, as though his captors had fed him very little, if at all during his imprisonment. He was also suffering from a short, choking cough and a high fever. Sora remembered how cold the dungeon in the stronghold was- Riku must have been ill from exposure.

He cried out in his sleep, and Sora was sure he heard him say his name.

"He's been calling for you a lot." Kairi said.

Sora felt the now-familiar pang of rage and grief for his friend, rage towards the Organization that did this to him, grief that he couldn't come to his aid sooner. He clamped Riku's hand tightly in his own.

"I'm so sorry, Riku." Sora said gently.

"Sora, you don't think were about to lose him, do you?" Kairi asked. She looked ready to burst into tears.

"Remember what you said Kairi. Riku's strong, and now he has his friends here to help him pull through." He turned to the sleeping form before him and stroked the silver hair. Riku leaned into his hand, comforted by the other boy's touch.

"If I know anyone who can pull through this, it is him."

Sora and Kairi were interrupted by the sound of Donald impatiently rushing into the room screeching something about them being late for dinner. They quickly complied, before the duck's screeching disturbed Riku. Sora was the last to leave, taking extra care to shut the door quietly. He called out a soft request to the sleeping boy before he left.

"Hold on, Riku."

End of Chapter 12.


	13. Fever dreams

A.N. Forgive me for what is going to happen here. I'm purposefully shooting for fanservice by including a little dream erotica centered around the full trio in this chapter. Not to mention I'm not entirely sure what teenage boys dream about under the influence of delirium but forcing Riku to relive the rape scene in chapter 5 nonstop seems too- well cruel. To avoid confusion, the dream sequence will be in italics. So, you have been warned. Those of you who like this stuff, enjoy ;)

Bait, Chapter 13

The next two days found everyone faced with grim reminders of the ordeal that awaited Riku. Lea had been traveling back and forth between worlds, using his dark corridor, to learn as much as he could about the origin of the dagger, while Yen Sid himself had returned to the tower briefly to retrieve whatever medicines and supplies he wasn't already equipped with at the castle.

A cold thrill of terror ran down Sora's spine as he saw what one of the things the old wizard had retrieved was. He had walked into Yen Sid's study to find him opening a small wooden case containing several sharp silver knives, examining them for any flaws or dulling. It was at that moment that he realized exactly _how_ Yen Sid had intended to retrieve the shard from Riku's body- excision, meaning he'd have to cut the fragment out along with any tissue that got affected by the magic in the shard. The idea bothered Sora, since he knew if there were complications, it could leave Riku disfigured, or worse, dead. He knew since he had learned of the procedure while learning medicine and healing magic from Yen Sid himself. He wondered if Riku would be strong enough to endure it.

He wouldn't know of that for awhile, as Yen Sid wanted to wait until Riku's condition was stable before he attempted anything, but keeping him stable was proving to be difficult. There would be moments where he would seem to improve, only to worsen again in a span of a few hours as the injuries took their toll. He was slowly getting weaker, yet the only ones who seemed to notice this were Sora and Kairi, who spent every available moment at Riku's side. They had learned to gauge Riku's condition by the timing of older boy's reactions, but could not figure out what was making him weaken like this.

XXXXXXXX

"Come on, Riku, you'll never get your strength up if you don't eat..." Kairi said in a gentle but encouraging voice, holding a mug of thin broth to Riku's lips, trying to coax him to drink. Riku however was in one of his bad moments and would not respond, only letting out moans of protest every time Kairi managed to get the rim of the mug past his lips, forcing the broth into his mouth. It proved to be a trial, but she did manage to get him to take the entire mug.

Kairi looked wholly defeated as she saw Riku pass out afterwards, exhausted after the fight he just put up. Sora caught her as she nearly passed out herself. The strain of caring for Riku was taking it's toll on them as well, and Kairi was beginning to break. She buried herself in Sora's shoulder and began to cry quietly.

"It's almost unbearable..." She whispered. "Knowing those creeps in the Organization could reduce someone as strong as Riku to... to this!"

"Shhh..." Sora quietly soothed the girl. "I know it's hard. But we gotta stay strong. Riku stayed strong for both of us before, and now it's time for us to be strong for him. He needs us."

XXXXXXXX

_Riku dozed quietly in his room, coming slowly back to awareness. The pain in his chest had lessened to a dull but constant throb, But he still felt like he was choking, every breath a struggle. His body still felt like it was on fire. Whatever sickness was coursing through his body had yet to subside. He tried to roll himself into a more comfortable position, instead falling back over with an involuntary cry, the movement had aggravated the still open wound, which flared with a stabbing pain._

_"Hey, you alright?" a concerned voice asked. _

_Riku opened his eyes slightly, spying a figure with dark red hair leaning over him, examining the bandages on his chest._

_"Kairi?" He asked. She turned to face him with a gentle smile on her face._

_"You're not in any pain right now, are you?" She cupped his cheek with her hand. It felt soft and cool against his fevered skin. _

_"No, I just- AAH!" Riku had attempted to sit upright to see Kairi at a better angle, forgetting about the wound until it flared with pain a second time. _

_"That didn't look like nothing..." Kairi said in a strangely seductive voice, lowering her lips to his and taking him in a slow, lingering kiss. Riku's eyes widened at the action._

_"Kairi, what are you..."_

_"Shhh..." She held two fingers to his lips to silence him. "Just let me help the pain go away..." Her hands had found their way under his shirt, her fingers tracing every detail of his form. _

_He shuddered as her fingers met sensitive nipples, she seized one between two fingers and, lifting his shirt, lowered her head and took the other one in her mouth. He stifled a moan as her tongue worked on him. _

_It didn't feel good like this when that awful man from the organization did the same thing to him weeks ago, though he wasn't gentle with him like Kairi was. _

_He still wanted it to stop. He knew she was doing this out of kindness, not vengeful lust, but it still felt wrong. Kairi was Sora's girlfriend after all, and letting her pleasure him like this felt like a breach of trust._

_"Kairi, you shouldn't -AHH- be doing this! What about Sora? How would -UGH- he feel about this?"_

_"It's okay, Riku." He had not noticed the other boy enter the room. "I understand. She's only trying to make you feel better."_

_"But this isn't... normal! I..." He was silenced by Sora coming to him and planting another kiss on his lips. The smaller boy released him and climbed in the bed behind him, gently lifting him into a sitting position so his head rested right over Sora's heart. The sound of the boys heartbeat comforted Riku, and he settled down enough to let the two do whatever they had planned. _

_"I can take over from here, Kairi." Sora said, lifting the girl so the two were looking into each others eyes. Some sort of silent resolution seemed to pass between them, as Sora had started working where Kairi left off. _

_Kairi meanwhile had turned her focus elsewhere. Try as he might to deny it, the activity had left Riku very aroused, and Kairi had spotted the proof of it beginning to emerge from under the sheets. She took her hand to the bulge and pressed down gently but firmly on it, earning a pleasured gasp from Riku. She smirked, hoping to get this kind of response from him._

_"See, have you forgotten about the pain yet?" Kairi asked coyly, pressing on his arousal yet again. Sora meanwhile continued his ministrations on his upper body, occasionally nipping the other boy's neck and ear. The input assaulting him from all directions was proving to be torture to Riku, who wanted it to end but at the same time wanted more. But she was right, he had completely forgotten about the pain._

_"AHHH! PLEASE!" He cried in desperation. Kairi reached under the waistband of his pajama bottoms in response, tauntingly stroking the length of his arousal with the tip of her finger, every subtle stroke making the boy squirm and whimper in anticipation. She made every effort to have the boy begging for release before finally lowering his pants and taking him in her mouth. _

_"K-KAIRI, DON'T!" Lights danced behind Riku's eyes and he held back several cries as she worked on him, her tongue working around his entire length and managing to find every sweet spot. He shuddered every time she grazed another sensitive area. How was she so good at this? _

_He didn't know if she intended to bring him to full climax or not, but he knew he wouldn't last much longer if this assault on his senses kept up. He could already feel the heat building up behind his navel, and he was entering a pleasured frenzy so intense that Kairi had to hold him down by the waist to keep him from thrusting so hard. The restraint only served to heighten his climax however, causing him to throw back his head and shriek in pleasure as he released right in the girls mouth. Kairi didn't gag however, but kept herself latched onto him until he fully rode out his release. _

_Kairi released him and he lay there, wide-eyed and twitching as the last dregs of his orgasm coursed through his body. Kairi smiled at him and kissed him gently on his forehead._

_"There, the pain shouldn't return for quite awhile. Sleep, get your strength up, I'll help make the pain go away again if it does come back..."_

_Fatigue set in quickly after that, as Riku found himself falling into a deep and dreamless sleep, his last recollection was of Sora asking Kairi if she had enough energy for a round with him._

XXXXXXXX

"How is he?" Kairi asked. Sora had stayed at Riku's side for the past hour so Kairi could get some rest.

"Seems to be getting a bit better..." Sora replied. "He was calling your name a lot too..." He blushed. "Kinda makes me wonder what he was dreaming about..."

"You might want to let Yen Sid know if you think he's improving. Could be that all this scare over the shard in his body is in fact a false alarm."

"Hold onto that hope, but we wont know for sure until I can get a better look at him." Yen Sid had entered the room to check up on Riku's condition, and had overheard them talking.

"I will say the odds truly are less likely now. Lea had been back to the organization stronghold to investigate. Word was going around that one of them had murdered the Riku replica. He had examined it's body himself. The shape and depth of the wound on the replica's body was the same as the one on Riku's."

"Another...replica?" a shocked Sora asked.

"Seems they were willing to try anything to get that 13th vessel. The replica had turned out to be a failure though."

"But what about Riku? How do you intend to see if that blade shard is in fact in HIS body or not?"

"All I can say is it would be a lot simpler than trying to go about removing it. It involves casting a simple magnetic spell and keeping a close watch out for any resistance. I should warn you however, the spell could cause the shard to move and cause him an intense amount of pain- if it IS in his body. You shouldn't have to witness this..."

End of chapter 13.


	14. Too much, Too soon

Bait, Chapter 14.

Sora gripped Riku's hand defensively. There was an unwavering defiance in his face.

"No. I won't make him endure this alone, especially if it leads to pain. You'd have to knock me out first!"

"I'm staying too!" Kairi piped in. "You could start torturing him right now and it would hurt _me _worse to abandon him when he needs us. He was there when we needed him!"

Those words stirred up several memories in Sora. Memories of how Riku had nearly given up his heart to try to save Kairi (though Sora ultimately did give up his), of him staying in darkness to help them seal the door, of Riku taking a nearly lethal blow for him, and of him diving into a black abyss to save Sora's heart from the cursed dream the Organization had put Sora under- the same Organization that had put Riku in this state.

Riku stirred and called out Sora's name in an almost inaudible voice. Sora felt Riku's hand twitch in his. He was trying to get a firmer grip on Sora's hand, he could tell, but the older boy was slowly getting weaker. Whatever improvement Sora had noticed earlier had died off, as though something had began to eat away at Riku's life force.

"Please!" Sora looked on the verge of tears. "He needs all of our support, you said that yourself!"

"We need to hurry master!" Mickey interjected. "Whether there's a blade fragment in his body or not, something's going wrong, Riku needs treatment, he's gotten weaker while this altercation went on, just let them stay!"

"Very well, but don't try to interfere, no matter what you witness. Got it?" The two nodded in agreement. Sora released Riku's hand and backed away so he could give Yen Sid space to work. The old wizard could hear the soft utterance made just before he left his side.

"Hold on just a little longer Riku... stay strong."

Yen Sid unwound the bandages from Riku's chest and carefully removed the packing, Riku hissing in pain as the rough gauze grazed the raw flesh in his wound. Sora immediately wished he'd looked away from the grisly sight it produced. Blood quickly pooled up in the wound and flowed off the boy's chest, soaking into the sheets where it left a dark stain. It was far too much blood for a wound that was supposed to be several days old.

Mickey rushed to his side with a cry of grief.

"So that's what's made him weaker- the wound was hemorrhaging. He's lost far too much blood!" he exclaimed, taking a hand to the pulse point in Riku's wrist, feeling intently for any change in the boy's vitals.

"Riku!" Kairi had buried her face in Sora's shoulder, where he could hear her begin to cry softly. He wrapped his arms around the frightened girl, rubbing her back soothingly.

Yen Sid summoned a mass of swirling magic into his palm. It was almost invisible, save for the way it seemed to make anything around it ripple. He held his palm over the still bleeding wound on Riku's chest, holding his full focus over the area, trying to detect any change in his magic or his young charge's behavior.

Nothing happened. Yen Sid did the same thing over the area surrounding the wound, getting the same result. He was ready to extinguish his magic when suddenly an arc of concentrated magnetic energy formed between them, nearly causing Yen Sid to jump in surprise. Riku's body jerked violently, a horrible choking cry escaped from his lips. The face of everyone present fell.

"You poor child..." Yen Sid said sadly. "So the shard was in your body all along." He made to withdraw his magic and prepare Riku for the ordeal of extracting the shard, when Mickey suddenly spoke up.

"Don't withdraw your magic yet, Master!" The mouse said. "Maybe the magnetic force can draw the shard out on its own. If we can do that, it will lead to as little damage as possible. A full blown surgery could kill him in his current state!"

The aged wizard nodded, still intent on the child lying below him. Riku arched his back and writhed, his body jerking every time the shard moved inside him, he was struggling to escape the source of his pain, but Yen Sid would not release him. Agonized cries quickly turned into violent coughing fits, and to Sora's horror- he started choking up blood. The shard must have pierced his lung by this point.

Kairi buried herself deeper into Sora's shoulder. Sora had stopped trying to comfort the girl, instead staring wide-eyed at the horrible sight before him, wanting to look away, but unable to. It wouldn't matter anyways, as the ordeal was beginning to invade Sora's other senses as well. He could still make out the faint hum of Yen Sid's magic, though it was nearly drowned out by Riku's screaming. He could make out the acrid metallic scent of blood on the air. He could feel the thick tension that was beginning to fill the air as everyone who was not actively involved in the procedure looked on helplessly.

Minutes dragged on, yet Yen Sid's efforts continued to prove fruitless. It was becoming evident that the ordeal was taking it's toll on both Yen Sid and Riku. The old wizard staggered briefly, quickly righting himself as he returned focus to his magic. Riku's outcries and reactions were getting weaker and less frequent.

Mickey, who still had his hand closed around the boy's wrist, gave a sudden cry of urgency.

"His pulse is dangerously high! If we keep stressing his body like this, we'll lose him!"

"Very well... if nothing happens soon... I'll stop... we'll try the excision... as soon as he's strong enough..." The wizard said between breaths. He was clearly running out of energy.

"Something's happening!" Sora suddenly exclaimed as he saw Riku begin to cry out and writhe with a new found intensity.

He let out an especially loud shriek as a pointed fragment emerged from his chest, drawn out by the force of the magic. The sight was one that would remain in the darkest portions of Sora's memories. It looked alive, slowly wriggling itself free from his best friend's body, as though it was putting up a fight to remain inside it's host. But Riku was no longer struggling. He had let out a final choking cry and collapsed into his pillows, where he remained quite still.

Yen Sid released his magic and seized the fragment as soon as it tore itself from Riku's flesh. The shard continued to emit it's dark, draining magic. He could feel it trying to eat away what little mana he had left. Disgusted, Yen Sid threw the shard onto a cloth that sat waiting on the nightstand.

"RIKU!" Sora had run to the boy's side as soon as everything was over. He had gone an awful shade of white and was completely unresponsive. Sora shouted Riku's name repeatedly and shook him with increasing roughness as each previous attempt to rouse him ended in failure. He held his head against his best friend's chest, listening for any sign of life, when he suddenly shouted out in terror.

"His heart stopped! Master, please help him!" Sora looked up st Yen Sid pleadingly. A sad but determined glance met his as the old man steadied himself and walked to them.

He laid both hands on Riku's chest, directly over his heart, and called forth a powerful wave of curaga magic. The glow seemed to pulsate in its intensity, and Sora realized Yen Sid was purposefully making it do so to mimic the beat of a heart.

But something seemed off. Curaga usually had this effect of being absorbed by it's targets body, but the glow of this spell seemed to just sit on top of his skin and not be absorbed, as though it was being cast on an empty shell.

"Come on, Riku, come back to us!" Sora held his hand and whispered pleadingly to him. Yet there seemed to be no change. Kairi had started crying again, her soft sobs could be heard from across the room, Mickey had taken over the job of comforting her and had her in a gentle embrace. Sora lowered his head in grief. He was more than sure that he had lost Riku again, this time for good. A single tear ran down the younger boys face.

"Riku...I'm so sorry..." Sora's tears quickly turning to soft sobs of grief.

Yen Sid extinguished his magic. Suddenly a soft gasp broke the silence. It was so soft it was nearly missed by Sora's ears, but he overlooked it anyways, certain his ears were playing tricks on him.

"Sora?" The voice was softer than the gasp he heard earlier, and sounded raspy with fatigue. He looked up slightly. Riku was still pale, but he could see some color had returned to his face. He could feel the older boy's hand tighten around his. His eyes opened slightly, slivers of deep cyan just visible under thick, dark eyelashes.

"Why are you crying Sora?" Riku asked in a weak but concerned voice. "Are you ok?"

"RIKU!" Sora had nearly forgotten the hellish procedure Riku had just been though when he lifted and held him in a tight embrace. He heard Riku cry out in pain and felt something damp against his skin, realizing with alarm that Riku was still bleeding, and a lot.

Yen Sid had noticed this too and quickly separated the two and had Riku lie down again so he could heal the wound properly. Curaga would stop the bleeding, but the wound was so deep that Riku needed stitches to allow it to heal completely. The process was painful for him, but not nearly as unbearable as what he had just been through.

Sora kept a firm grip on his hand the whole time, the younger boy's presence served to calm him and make him forget his suffering for a while.

Riku had actually fallen asleep again by the time Yen Sid had bandaged the wound, after applying another drop of the painkilling medicine he had given him that night in the gummi ship. He instructed Sora and Kairi to find him quickly if there were any more complications, as he knew they would not leave his side any time soon. He then left the trio alone to look after each other, completely confident in the bond the three of them shared.

End of Chapter 14.


	15. A Grim Truth Revealed

Bait chapter 15

Mickey and Lea remained behind to make sure Sora and Kairi weren't left alone with the task of changing out the bloodstained bedding. Riku had been lain in a chair near the window. Sora removed his equally bloodstained clothing in favor of simple blue pajamas.

There was no resistance from Riku as Sora tended to him. The procedure had wiped him out, he hadn't stirred once since Yen Sid revived him, the only movement was his breathing, which Sora noted was still very labored. He was also burning with fever again.

He cursed himself for not paying attention to this other complication.

The stress created by the shard in his body had made everyone forget that Riku was also fighting a sickness brought on by exposure, pneumonia most likely. The thought sent a thrill of terror across Sora's mind: Was Riku strong enough to fight this, considering all he'd just been through? The process of removing a simple knife shard had nearly killed him.

"Mickey? I need your advice on something..." The mouse looked up from what he was doing and walked to where Sora and Riku were. He noted that Riku's color had improved dramatically, perhaps too much so. His face looked flushed, and he seemed to be trying too hard to simply breathe.

"What's the matter Sora?" The mouse asked, trying in vain to sound encouraging.

"Riku. He just...doesn't look right. The scare that blade shard brought on- it made us all forget he was also fighting an illness on top of everything."

The mouse lowered his head, ashamed of his own lack of attention, and nodded slightly.

"He might have gotten worse in the time we forgot about it. Please tell me it isn't too late to do something for _this._"

"No, Sora. We've already managed to pull him through the worst of this, after all! Master Yen Sid's knowledge of medicine plus all our magic should have have him well again in no time! But we should let both Riku and Yen Sid get their strength back before we try anything more."

Sora nodded in assent. The process of removing the shard alone seemed to consume a great deal of the old wizard's mana, but he was sure the desperate effort of reviving Riku had completely drained it. And Riku himself had been at Death's door nearly an hour ago and was certainly in no condition to endure the effects of even the gentlest medicine or healing spell right now. Rest was probably the best thing for all of them right now.

They were careful not to disturb Riku when they returned him to his bed, though Sora was convinced an explosion wouldn't be able to wake him now. He had to keep reminding himself that Riku was just weak, not dead, and would probably be unable to move for several hours. Though it was a good way to guarantee an undisturbed rest for the boy, it brought on its own set of challenges.

Yen Sid had left an Elixir with them after that hellish procedure, instructing them to have Riku drink the entire vial. But, since Riku was unresponsive, it proved to be almost impossible to get him to simply swallow it. Mickey instructed Sora to lift him into an upright position, while the mouse himself poured the Elixir into his mouth, then encouraging him to swallow it by gently massaging his throat. Riku choked on the Elixir but managed to drink it all before slumping in Sora's arms, completely drained.

XXXXXXXX

The shard fit the notch left in the dagger like a puzzle, leaving no gap or seam in the dark metal. The sight caused the old man to breathe a sigh of relief. Donald and Goofy stared at him, confusion on their faces.

"Master?" Donald asked timidly.

"The boy was lucky that the blade had not shattered in his body, or he'd probably still be going through hell right now, or worse."

It was not like Yen Sid to utter even this mild swear word, but he was exhausted from the effort he had just put into extracting the fingernail-sized shard of metal he handled gingerly between two fingers. He could feel it trying to sap at his own energy as he handled it. The old man shuddered, quickly placing the shard back on the bloodstained cloth it had been resting on.

How Riku had been able to endure the draining magic of that shard for almost three days still astounded him. The child was known to underestimate his own strength in hard times, but the wizard now felt that _he _was the one underestimating Riku.

The boy was still in for a long recovery, but the worst of it was over now, provided there were no more complications. He could easily treat the exposure sickness he had contracted during his confinement, but for now they both needed to recover from the previous hour's events. It had nearly been too much for them both.

XXXXXXXX

_Riku was back in the cold prison that had held him for nearly a month. He lay shivering on the futon in the corner of the room. He fell into a fit of short, choking coughs that caused him to double over. He felt as though his chest was about to burst._

_"Well, well, it seems our little guest has woken up!" It was that familiar, slimy voice again. Riku tried to back away from the source of the voice, but found he was too weak to move. _

_Xigbar quickly leaped on the opportunity. He walked up to Riku and forced him back into the same kneeling position he used last time he had his way with him. He reached under his shirt and rubbed his back in a display of mock tenderness. The man nipped at his ear, causing Riku to cringe._

_"You're shivering. I know it can get quite chilly in here. Why don't you look at this as me... helping you warm up a little..."_

_He'd sooner be frozen solid than let Xigbar warm him up in this manner._

_"No, please..." Riku knew he was in no state to endure the man's violation of his body, even if he did want it. _

_"Just shut up and take it!" Xigbar growled as he tore Riku's clothing off him and entered him forcefully...Riku could feel his skin tearing, every thrust was agony to his already abused body, and he couldn't hold back this time. Less than a minute into the ordeal, and he was screaming..._

"NOOO!" The sudden scream of pain and terror caught both Sora and Kairi by surprise. Kairi rushed to Riku's side and lifted him into a tight embrace. He struggled against her touch, still trapped in the nightmare.

"Its ok, Riku, I got you, You're safe!" She tried to rouse the older boy with little success. He settled down slightly but remained in the depths of his nightmare. He began to shake violently.

"I...I think his fever is getting worse..." The girl's voice was shaky as though she was holding back tears. A low moan escaped from Riku's lips. Kairi held him even closer to her and began to hum a lullaby that she would sing during those lonely nights before their reunion, one that was a favorite of children on the Destiny Islands.

Sora left the room and returned several minutes later with Mickey in tow. The mouse had a bowl of water and a cloth in his hand. He cautiously approached the bedside, placing the bowl and cloth on the nightstand and laid his small hand against Riku's cheek, whispering words of encouragement into the boy's ear.

Kairi took the rag and, dampening it in the water, she held it against his forehead. Riku sighed softly and returned to the deep sleep that he had been in before the nightmare. Mickey moved his hand from the boy's face and grasped his hand tightly.

"I wish I knew what was troubling you, my young friend." The boy slept on, whimpering as he returned to the world of his nightmare. "What can I do to help you get through this?"

"I'm afraid there's little that can be done to ease a nightmare..." Yen Sid had returned to the room briefly, disturbed by the sudden increase in activity and afraid that Riku had suffered a complication. Though he was relieved that it wasn't so, his heart still ached for the child, his behavior had confirmed what he suspected that first night. How could he inform those three innocents in the room with him what may have happened. Looking down sadly, he opted to be frank with them.

"Can I ask you all to sit down for a minute?"

Mickey took a seat in the nearest chair, but Sora and Kairi took their seats right on the edge of Riku's bed, alarm showing on all their faces. Being asked to sit near a person's sickbed usually meant grim news was about to be shared. Sora clutched Riku's hand in a death grip, and Riku, now back in the full force of his nightmare, let out a forced cry of "STOP!"

"It's not going to be easy to hear this, but I think you all will need to know this sooner or later. On the first day here, while I was examining Riku, I found injuries of a suspicious nature on his lower body."

Sora stared at Yen Sid, confused, but Kairi and Mickey's eyes widened as the realization set in.

"You don't mean..."

Yen Sid shook his head sadly, "The way Riku acted during the nightmare only confirms my suspicion more. There is a good reason to believe he had been raped at some point during his confinement ..."

End of Chapter 15.


	16. Potions

Bait, Chapter 16

The sound of a gentle singing voice broke the silence throughout the castle, the tune was that of the same lullaby Kairi hummed to Riku earlier that day. She was singing it as much to ease her own racing mind as to soothe the mind of the sick boy beside her:

_Though the day is nearly done,  
and away has gone the sun,  
Light still shines in our embrace,  
and upon your peaceful face,  
so sleep my love, dream my love..._

Kairi sat at the bedside gently stroking Riku's hair. Night had fallen, moonlight shining brightly in through the windows, illuminating everything the light touched with a soft pale glow. It reflected off the boy's silver locks, rippling with each stroke, creating an effect that hypnotized Kairi. Riku slept quietly, the silence broken only by the sporadic choking fits. Kairi stilled her hand, causing the boy to whimper slightly.

"Shhh, I'm not going anywhere." Kairi planted a soft kiss on the boy's forehead, an action that served to both gauge his fever and ease his mind.

He was still very warm to the touch, even though he was shivering. Riku slept on, his whimper quieted by her kiss. Kairi turned her attention back to the figure in the doorway.

"How's he doing?" Sora had entered the room so quietly that Kairi would not have noticed until he spoke, had she not turned around and seen him. They had been taking turns- one keeping an eye on Riku so the other could rest. Sora was still injured himself, so Kairi had actually been giving him a bit longer to rest than he agreed to.

"No change- well, at least he hasn't had any more nightmares. I think the lavender Mickey gave him is helping..."

Mickey had left a small pouch of the dried flowers under Riku's pillow before he retired for the night, claiming the scent of lavender had properties that could soothe a troubled mind. Sora was grateful that the flowers were helping, remembering how difficult it was to pull Riku out of his last nightmare- he had started thrashing so hard that they had to restrain him so he wouldn't injure himself. He'd never get his strength up if the nightmares kept coming.

And due to Yen Sid's frightening revelation that evening, it was no wonder why Riku was having such a bad time. He must have lost the will to fight after he was raped, making his condition deteriorate so much faster than normal. He approached the bedside and took his friend's hand in his own.

"Sora?" Riku, knowing the touch, opened his eyes slightly. Even in the pale moonlight, the brilliant cyan eyes stood out. They were still slightly dimmed by his fever, but Sora noticed that some of their light was returning. He no longer doubted that Riku would survive whatever sickness he had contracted, but he still feared for him. Some things were irreversible, and Sora now had a personal score to settle with whoever violated his best friend.

_I broke our rules! Even as recently as the span of time your precious Riku has been here!_

The memory struck Sora like a stone, his eyes narrowed- he knew who his new target was.

_Xigbar!_

"What's wrong, Sora? Did someone hurt you? Why are you so mad?"

Sora looked down, half concerned, half amused, to see that Riku was awake and had seen the brief expression of rage.

Even when he was desperately ill, Riku could get too overprotective for his own good.

"Save your strength, Riku... get some sleep." Sora stroked his hair in the same way Kairi had been moments earlier, and Riku, still very weak from the harrowing procedure he endured hours earlier, returned to the deep, dreamless sleep fate had been merciful enough to give him, Kairi's lullaby still echoing in and out of his consciousness:

_Sleep my love, Dream my love,  
__let it take you on the wings of a dove..._

XXXXXXXX

Yen Sid was more thorough in examining Riku the following morning, making sure to see how well the wound was healing as well as trying to determine what was making him so sick now.

After giving an approving nod at the less angry-looking stitches on the boy's chest, he placed the tips of his fingers to the pulse point in his neck. He checked the boy's other vitals in an equally methodical manner, his face knit in concentration. His face showed no emotion when he finished examining him.

"He has pneumonia, but its only a mild case."

Sora's eyes widened at what Yen Sid said.

"I'm actually not surprised, considering the harsh conditions the Organization subjected him to. He's actually come through this ordeal with some luck- things could have been so much worse for him right now. This condition will not be a difficult one to treat." Yen Sid gave Sora and Kairi an encouraging smile.

"But I think the fact that he has such good friends to help him pull through also has something to do with it." The two of them beamed at the old man's praise.

Yen Sid left the room and returned moments later, clutching a vial containing a light purple liquid. It seemed to emit a steady, gentle glow. He held it up to the light, checking it for impurities.

"What is that?" Sora asked.

"Panacea, a potion that speeds recovery time and encourages sickness or poison to leave the body. They're not that uncommon, but since your missions often had you more likely to face injury instead of illness, you've not really had need to use them. To put it simply, its another make of healing potion."

"You mean... this was all he needed? Why didn't you give it to him sooner?"

"Its not that simple i'm afraid. The potion you're accustomed to using merely uses magic to speed the healing process, but this works a little differently. Disease is a completely different entity- no potion will touch it- you can heal whatever a disease has already damaged, but unless it is driven out, it will only damage the body again. This potion is one that will give him enough strength to drive the sickness out naturally while healing the damage that it already caused. It will speed up the process, but it will still take a couple days for the full effects to be seen."

Riku meanwhile had fallen into another choking fit. Sora and Yen Sid watched, feeling pity for the boy, but unable to do anything to break the fit. It was several minutes before the fit died down and Yen Sid spoke again, his voice holding a hint of warning to it.

"I should also warn you that the effects can be a bit...harsh. It will seem like he's getting worse at first, but don't panic, its normal. The panacea will give him the strength he needs to endure the symptoms."

Sora stared blankly at Yen Sid. Even in his normal state this lengthy description would be too much to take in, but he had taken a blow to the head mere days ago, so nothing got through to him.

"Well, I guess you'll just have to see its effects to understand." He lifted Riku into a sitting position, removed the stopper from the potion and somehow got the sleeping boy to drink the whole vial. Riku choked on the potion slightly- Sora understood, potions tasted awful- and slumped in Yen Sid's arms. The old man gently lowered him back to the pillows.

"He'll need a dose of that twice every day until he starts to improve. It should only be two or three days at most." Sora shuddered at the thought of drinking those vile potions twice daily. He only had to use them at most once every week during particularly rough missions, but he would sooner use curaga or Elixir if he could afford it. Elixir wasn't that bad, having a flavor similar to an unsweetened tea, but potions had a vile, oily taste that made you gag every time you drank it, and he imagined the ones Yen Sid had Riku taking were no better.

"So, is there anything else that should be done?" Sora asked.

"Just keep doing what helps, you know that best." He smiled at the two of them again and left the room.

End of Chapter 16.


	17. Return of the Riku Replica

Bait, Chapter 17

Like Yen Sid warned, Riku's condition seemed to worsen at first: his fever rose to a nearly lethal level and he would break out in chronic, violent coughing fits that often made him forcefully expel what little sustenance he had taken in. Yen Sid would brush Sora and Kairi's concerns aside, reminding them that this was supposed to happen.

"I did tell you that it would have harsh effects." The old wizard said in a reassuring manner. "Don't fear, that just means his body is working harder to drive the sickness from it. The potion will give him the strength he needs to endure these symptoms. Just keep supporting him, the closeness of friends is what he needs the most right now..."

Nonetheless, he had to add magic to the harsh regimen when Riku started bringing up blood during those intense fits. The fits were aggravating the still-healing wound on his chest, requiring Yen Sid to cast cure over the injuries regularly, while praying the fits wouldn't become severe enough to tear the stitches.

Some good had come from their efforts, however, as Riku finally woke fully in the early morning two days later. It was only for short bursts of about five minutes or so at first, but soon he was able to stay awake for several hours at a time, holding short conversations with the others.

His coughing fits would often cut those talks short. It was in his favor that he was often the one asking the questions, as Yen Sid had warned all of them not to bring up his confinement until he was well enough. It gave him a chance to rest and catch his breath as they answered him.

"How long have I been here for?" he asked.

"Just under a week..." Sora replied. "Please don't give me that, you haven't been well, after all!" He added when Riku gave him a confused look.

"I wasn't trying to argue..." Riku said quietly. "I just can't seem to make sense of it...I must have lost sense of time while I was out of it..." He suddenly broke down in another choking fit. Sora dropped what he was doing and landed three sharp, open handed blows to Riku's back. The fit slowly subsided, and Riku slumped against Sora's shoulder. Sora just let him rest there, Riku was still very weak, and the fit had worn him out.

"Did it get warm in here?" Riku asked sleepily. Sora could tell delirium was starting to set in again, the older boy looked slightly dazed.

"No, its just the fever." He answered. "Maybe you'll cool down a bit if you rest..." Sora lifted an exhausted Riku from his shoulder and gently pushed him back into the pillows. Fatigue proved to be too much for Riku, who fell asleep at once.

_He was in that cold cell again. He chose to stay on his guard, knowing that horrible man with the scars could be hiding in the shadows. _

_"I know you're here, show yourself!" Riku shouted into nothingness._

_"Ooh, seems the little boy has some fight left in him. This should be fun!" The man's voice echoed around the room. Riku jumped at the sound._

_"But I still detect a little fear beneath that fierce facade. Still not ready to sit back and take it like a man, are ya?"_

_"Lay a hand on me and you'll regret it!"_

_"Who said it had to be a 'hand' my dear boy?" The man said in a sly voice._

_"You're disgusting..."_

_"That's where we differ, you see, I actually find this to be far from disgusting. Your behavior is actually a bit of a turn-on right now." The man apparated in front of him with a soft 'poof,' looking Riku defiantly in the eye. Riku averted his gaze, thoroughly disgusted._

_"Can't we get this over with already, kiddo? Waiting for you hasn't exactly been a walk in the park." He reached up and caressed the boy's face. Riku shuddered at the man's touch._

_"I...I WON'T LET YOU!" He turned and ran toward the door with as much speed as his still weakened body could manage. It wasn't fast enough. The man caught up to him with another 'poof' and once again forced him into the same confined position he used to violate him every time. _

_"No...not again..." Riku felt wholly broken this time. Would he ever be strong enough to resist this vile man's advances? He lowered his head and submitted. A soft, shaky sob broke the silence._

_"LET HIM GO NOW!" Riku looked up, this voice... it was strangely familiar. His assailant seemed to recognize the voice too, as he released Riku and turned to face him, weapons drawn._

_"Not you again!" He shouted in disgust. _

_His restraint gone, Riku was able to get a good look at who had saved him. Disbelief registered on his face. He thought he was dead- Lea had told him what had happened, so how was he standing before him, clear as day? _

_He was staring into the face of his replica._

End of Chapter 17.


	18. The Dream Eater

A.N. With the end of this story approaching, it seems fair to warn fans that after I do a edit/rewrite of this fic to fix certain grammar errors and put more depth into certain scenes, I will be at work on a sequel. The reason I am warning you is not because it will be another M rated fic, which it will, but because it promises to be a crossover and will therefore be harder to find. This fic will feature both popular and obscure worlds- confirmations are already set on Naruto, Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, The Hunger Games, and Tegami Bachi, though other worlds may appear on the list as a plot develops. The plot btw: After the events of "Bait," the characters from the Kingdom Hearts universe discover another rift- and this one leads to strange new worlds. Both allies and opponents decide to use this rift to enlist some new and unusual help for the upcoming war, at the same time aiding these worlds with their own problems. No suggestions for the sequel please, I would be able to ensure authenticity better if I only use stories I know. Ok, I've held you up long enough, enjoy!

Bait, Chapter 18.

_The replica had a keyblade in his hand. HIS keyblade, Riku realized in shock. Where did he get it? There was no need for it though, as Xigbar either lost interest in his quarry, or had realized the battle was lost against the iron will of the Riku Replica. It didn't stop him from shooting them his nastiest smile before he teleported out._

_"Come with me, there's something I want to show you!" The replica had said this more as a warning than a request, as he grabbed Riku by his arm and pulled him into a dark corridor that appeared behind them._

_They reappeared on a sunlit beach, the smell of saltwater and the crash of waves assaulted Riku's senses. He immediately knew where they were._

_"This is our Island!" He exclaimed. "How did you find out about it?"_

_There was no answer. He turned around to find that the replica had gone into the water and was now waist-deep in the surf. He rushed to him, and was quickly amazed to find that his pain and weariness seemed to wash away with every step in the water._

_"The ocean, it has a revitalizing quality to it, doesn't it?" The replica asked him._

_"How did you find out about our home?" Riku asked._

_"I was created from your memories, though they were incomplete and fragmented. I guess those memories were repaired when I took refuge in your heart."_

_"Refuge?"_

_The replica looked down, as though a painful memory had surfaced._

_"When Xigbar murdered me, my body died, but my heart lived on. But it too would die if it didn't find a body to nurture it. It naturally sought out the purest soul it could find, which happened to be the very same soul of my...origin."_

_The replica was smiling. It was the first time Riku had seen him wearing a genuine smile._

_"It says a lot about the Organization if my soul was the purest one you could find."_

_The smile quickly faded from the replica's face._

_"You are too hard on yourself, do you realize that?"_

_Riku said nothing, he just stared down into the water. Little fish darted around his legs. He didn't feel that way. He had hardly been what you would call a "pure soul," he had betrayed his friends, given in to darkness, hell, his will was too weak to even resist Xigbar's violation of his own body mere weeks ago. He'd been having that same nightmare about it ever since._

_"I know what's going through your mind. You keep going over every mistake you've ever made, don't you?"_

_"Those weren't mistakes..."_

_"Yes they were. Weakness, be it of body, mind, OR will is a very human trait that nobody is immune to. You can strengthen any one of these traits with practice. And well, mistakes are common when you practice. Wisdom comes out when you recognize a mistake and try not to repeat it. And I know you never repeated any of your mistakes, I do have your memories after all!"_

_No answer came from the other boy._

_"Please, I know how rough you've had it, but don't give up now! Sora's your best friend, you're the closest thing to a brother Kairi ever had! They need you! They can't have you getting lost in flashbacks when they need your strength in combat."_

_"I would never abandon them! Never again!" The replica's smile returned at Riku's new found defiance._

_"Then let them be your driving force. And if you ever need someone who understands you better than even them, I'll be waiting right here. Remember when you acted as a Dream Eater for Sora, well, i can be yours!"_

_That was when Riku got a good look at the clothes the replica now wore. They were the same ones he wore in the sleeping worlds, every detail an exact copy from the dream eater insignia on his back to the yellow and grey details on his shoes. The replica obviously saw Riku as enough of a role model to want to take on his whole look, not just his face and body._

_"That sounds like...a good trade-off." Riku shot the replica a sly grin. "Since you've decided to make my heart your new home, that can be how you pay me." The replica just chuckled in response._

_"I'm sorry I couldn't save you..." Riku said quietly. The Replica just walked up to him and laid a hand on his shoulder._

_"But you did, you freed me from the hellish existence the Organization had subjected me to, you gave me an identity, and you have given my heart shelter." The Replica grinned, looking remarkably like Sora when he did. Riku couldn't help but laugh at how out of place the smile looked on his own face._

_He turned around, still beaming, and said one final phrase:_

_"__I am finally at peace, and you played a big part in it."_

End of Chapter 18.


	19. A New Plan Arises

Bait, Chapter 19

"So you're saying XIGBAR was the one that stabbed him?" Lea asked incredulously.

"I think so, he was the one with the scars, right?" Sora replied.

The entire group had congregated in Riku's room to discuss the events of the past month, and what it may spell for them in the coming months. They were all seated in chairs or against the wall of the room, with the exception of Sora, Riku, and Kairi, who were seated on the edge of Riku's bed. They had just brought up the events of the rescue and Xigbar's unexpected ambush of Riku, Yen Sid, and Kairi.

"Yes, but... It doesn't make sense. The intel Riku gathered all those months ago claim that he specialized in shooting weapons. Knives were more Xaldin's specialty."

"From what the Replica told me, that knife had been a prototype of Xigbars. Claimed he wanted a weapon that would subdue his opponents. He said Xigbar was bragging about it when he murdered him." The rest of the group stared at Riku in disbelief.

"Are you sure you're feeling alright?" Sora asked, laying a hand on the older boy's forehead. "How can you be talking to a dead person?"

Riku brushed Sora's hand aside. "I'm fine!" He said in mild annoyance. "Just hear me out. I can talk with the Replica because... he's here right now." Riku pointed to his heart. "He took refuge in my heart after he was murdered, and we've been able to communicate telepathically for several days now. I thought it was a dream at first, but I can hear him in the waking world as well. I'm not hallucinating!" He added when he saw Sora's still unconvinced face. "Don't ask me how I know it's him, I just do!"

"I believe you, but this phenomenon is quite unusual..." Yen Sid said. "Mind you, I've only heard tell of very few puppet replicas in my whole experience, but, from what my sources told me, two of them returned to their original being when they passed, fusing with the being's soul and not living on as a separate entity. They never spoke to their beings or gave any inkling they lived on. But this one... He seems to have taken on his own personality. Its like he lived long enough to develop his own unique and separate identity. He has a soul of his own now and is now possessing you rather than returning to you."

"If he's possessing him, shouldn't we do something to subdue or extract him? I don't want to see another Ansem incident!" Sora cried in alarm.

"Whatever the case may be, he is still living on in Riku right now." Mickey said. "I don't know what playing host to two souls could do to both of them in the long run, but since the presence is causing neither of them distress, If anything the Replica's presence is giving Riku strength, unlike Ansem, who seemed to eat away at him. I think we should leave that connection alone."

Sora glared at the king, making him quickly interject: " If it does prove to be a malevolent connection, Yen Sid can seal him away."

"Don't I have any say in this manner?" An annoyed Riku asked. "Its my heart that's playing host to the Replica, and I agree with Mickey. Just leave him alone, he gave his word that he wouldn't harm me. I could sense if his soul was corrupted, and i sense none. I daresay his soul is purer than my own!"

_I told you not to be so hard on yourself. _The replica growled in his head.

_Leave it, I'm trying to protect you! _

"Very well." Yen Sid sighed. "We need to get back to the matter of the Organization's plan anyway. So, the replica told you Xigbar wanted this knife to subdue his opponents?"

"Yes. Xigbar has been playing traitor ever since the plan to make the false rift had been settled. He thought his own idea would work better, and took the loss in a very immature manner. I don't know what sort of fate awaits that man, but odds are pretty high about them seeking out another vessel. They still target Sora, but the Replica and I had proven to be incompatible. Lea is the human form of a former organization member. They will have no interest in him, even if he now wields the Keyblade. They probably view him as traitorous or weak."

Lea shot Riku a dirty look.

"And the King is too powerful to allow himself to fall into the darkness of the Organization. That leaves Kairi. I don't know if she has become their second target, being a Princess of Light won't matter as they are out to clash with a different type of light now. She needs to be kept safe."

"Well, then we should set things in motion, shouldn't we?" Sora was the one who spoke. Riku smiled at the determination in his face. He knew he would not let anything bad happen to Kairi.

_That's the spirit, Sora. _Riku thought. _I envy your strong will. _

End of chapter 19.


	20. The Secret

A.N. Ok, I confess, I bit off more than I could chew with "Uncharted waters."

*Jade's creative streak: U mad?  
*Jade: Shut up!

...So I have instead opted to simply continue the plot of "Bait," using some themes from the scrapped sequel, but I think there may be a completely different plot in play ultimately. I can sense a "Vengeance quest" on the horizon for Sora, and some inner conflict between Riku and Repliku. No guarantees, all I will say is, chapter 20 has been rewritten entirely to accommodate this new plot. So, I hope beyond hope that you all enjoy this new extension of "Bait"  
~Jade

Bait, Chapter 20.

The aftermath of his ordeal had left Riku bedridden for 10 days, and he had never been happier to be told to get up and move around at the end of it. Nonetheless, he had to rely on one of his companions to help him do so. Though the replica had done a satisfactory job of healing him after the incident in Organization 13's dungeon, the injuries he had sustained made walking a painful experience-his right leg had buckled under his own weight after taking those first few steps.

Riku would have been lying if he said the symptom didn't frighten him, as it had. He was almost certain he had sustained irreprible damage and would no longer be able to fight. He had only just earned the title of Keyblade master, and to have to give that up was an unbearable concept.

It was that fear that had Sora summon Yen Sid in a panic. He had been the one supporting Riku as the two of them headed to breakfast one morning, but the sheer difference in their height had done little to ease the pain in Riku's leg. They were only about halfway there when his leg gave out again, leaving Riku curled up on the floor clutching at the injury, eyes watering in pain.

"Riku! What happened? Are you in pain?" An alarmed Sora exclaimed.

"Stop...panicking...Go find...Yen Sid..." Riku said through gritted teeth.

The old wizard arrived with a self-conscious looking Sora at his heels. Before Riku had a chance to protest, he lifted and carried him to a nearby room as though holding an infant, gently lowering him into a chair.

"It'll be nice to have my dignity back when this is all over!" Riku exclaimed sourly, though Yen Sid could detect the quiver of fear in his voice.

Yen Sid gently rolled Riku's pant leg up, uncovering the ugly purple bruise that covered most of his lower leg. He gently but firmly ran his fingers over the entire area of the injury, feeling for any irregularities. Both Sora and Riku looked intently at the old man, praying for good news.

"You have nothing to fear." Yen Sid said, giving a sympathetic look to both of them. Riku let out an audible sigh of relief. "The injury is severe but not debilitating. Your leg is just badly bruised and probably atrophied from lack of use. Getting yourself back in shape should set it right again."

"How am I supposed to do that? I can't even walk on my own, the pain is so bad..." Riku began, but Yen Sid stopped him.

"I haven't been blind to your suffering, Riku." He began, drawing a small jar from his robes. "I had actually spent the past few days preparing this special medicine for you..." Opening the jar, they noticed it contained a pale salve that smelled faintly of mint. Yen Sid applied a thin layer of it directly to Riku's leg, and Riku was pleased to find that the stuff worked pretty quickly: he could feel the pain lessening the moment it made contact with his skin.

"Here..." Yen Sid placed the jar in Riku's hands. "You can use that whenever the pain becomes too much to bear. It should numb it long enough for you to try moving around by yourself."

"Riku, is it ok if I ask you something?" The two of them were headed back to the room by the courtyard later that day. Riku still walked with a pronounced limp, but no longer needed someone to support him.

"What is it?"

"Well, I was wondering- what happened that made your leg get injured like that anyway?"

The older boy froze, horrible memories chasing themselves around his head. He knew exactly what had happened, as well as what it had led to. He prayed Sora wouldn't press him for more information than he was willing to reveal.

"I tried to escape. Xigbar caught me, and broke my leg so I wouldn't try it again."

"But your leg wasn't broken when we found you!" Sora exclaimed, a confused look on his face.

"That's because my Replica healed it... or at least tried to."

"Was that the day you met your Replica?"

"I'm not sure... I can't really remember much before the...incident."

"Incident?"

"I-I I'm not ready to talk about that!" Riku walked at a faster pace, his body rigid.

"Riku!"

"Don't push it!"

Sora had to run to catch up with him, placing himself directly in his path.

"Riku, I know what happened! Need I remind you that I was one of the people who cared for you after we saved you! I've seen the full extent of you injuries!"

Riku froze. "It's not like you to make that kind of connection."

"Maybe not, but Mickey and Yen Sid were there too, and both of them were wise enough to put the pieces together. Riku, I know someone took advantage of you in that dungeon, and I think it would be best if you didn't have to shoulder that burden alone!"

End of Chapter 20


	21. The Full Story Revealed

Bait, Chapter 21

The first thing to cross Riku's mind was betrayal. Just how many people knew about the darkest moment he endured in that dungeon? But then another thought crossed his mind, and suddenly his face felt hot. He was blushing. It just occurred to him that Sora, Mickey, Yen Sid and lord knows who else had seen _those parts _of his body while he was unconscious.

"Just how many people know about that?"

"Just me, Yen Sid, Mickey, and Kairi... Lea and the others might have heard about it later on, but I don't know for sure."

_Kairi! _Riku was certain his face had gone a shade redder. She was the last person he wanted to see him... naked! _Oh gods! _He was glad the lighting was dim, if Sora could see the way his body was responding to those thoughts...

"Riku? Is something wrong? You've suddenly gone all quiet."

"N-nothing! Just got lost in thoughts, that's all..." Riku found himself walking as fast as he could to escape from the awkward situation.

As mature as he usually acted, it was easy to forget that Riku was a teenager, and was just as prone to falling victim to his hormones as any other teen. He personally wished it wasn't so, as any loss of self-control made him vulnerable. He finally found his way back to his room, closing the door swiftly behind him.

"You sure you're feeling okay? You seem very on-edge all of a sudden."

"Gods Sora!" Riku must have jumped a good foot in the air from the shock, landing hard on the injured leg and letting out a yelp as pain flared across it. He had forgotten Sora was still with him.

Allowing himself to calm down, he sat himself on his bed and applied another coat of the salve Yen Sid had given him to his leg, sighing as the medicine erased the pain.

"Yes, Sora. I was on edge. Just think of what we were just talking about. Wouldn't you be on edge all the time too if that happened to you?"

Sora lowered his head. "So it's true then, you were raped..."

Riku looked down at his knees, ashamed.

"Though he claimed he was tempted into the act, I think Xigbar really did it to break me..."

_I knew it, it was Xigbar! _Sora's heart flared with rage. Riku started talking rapidly, Sora was sure he wanted to get the story over with as soon as possible.

"It happened about two weeks into my confinement. I had tried to escape, but slipped. It made a lot of noise and alerted the Organization to the escape attempt. I didn't get far before Xigbar caught up with me, I think he used his teleportation ability. I resisted, and he broke my leg by striking it with a scrapped board. It hurt really bad- I think I blacked out from the pain, because next thing I knew, I was lying in my room again, with Xigbar trying to undress me..."

Though Sora hung onto every word, Riku could tell by his expression that he was becoming enraged. He continued, trying to get to the end of the story as quickly as possible.

"I did resist, at first, but I was locked in that small room, and one of my legs was broken. I was unable to run or fight back. All I could do in the end was try to remain calm through the ordeal, which was not easy. It was painful, and I found myself wondering at one point if I was deformed in some way. Anyone I knew who had been taken in that manner, they said they found it enjoyable..."

"You're not deformed..." Sora responded. "All those people you knew, they knew what they were doing, and had done so with permission. Xigbar had taken you by force, and was trying to inflict pain. You said so yourself, you think he did it to break you..."

Riku said nothing. It was a lot to take in.

"You know... if you ever want to know how it's _supposed _to feel... well..." Sora suddenly looked down, blushing intensely. "I've been a bit curious about it too... You can ask me if you ever feel brave enough..." Chuckling self-consciously, Sora stood up and made to leave the room, only to be stopped by Riku grabbing his arm.

"Are you absolutely sure?" Riku's voice had suddenly taken on an intense cadence. "Because at this point I'm willing to try anything to put an end to the nightmares..."

End of Chapter 21.

A.N. If the end of this chapter isn't warning enough, this note will: there will be yaoi in the next chapter. Don't like, don't read.


	22. Creature Comforts

A.N. Aaaand now for another... interlude. Those who read those first few chapters of "Uncharted Waters" before I scrapped it might recognize traits of this scene, as it was inspired by it. It's a little fluff yaoi- the previous chapter should have explained everything, so if you don't like this stuff, i strongly advise you to leave the page now. I won't be hurt if you do, though most people who hate that kind of stuff would've probably stopped reading by chapter 5.

Bait, Chapter 22

He had given his permission and knew without a doubt Sora would be much gentler with him than Xigbar was, but the prospect of what was about to go down still scared Riku a little. It was not the knowledge that this was considered taboo at their home- the things Riku had done in the past made this a minor issue in comparison, it was the thought that one of them might be hurt during this.

"Are you sure you want to go through with this?" Sora asked.

"Y-yes." Even though Riku had settled down a little since that suggestion involving Kairi seeing him nude, his hormones still had a stronger hold on him than his mind did. "Lets j-just do this." He sat down on his bed, trying his best to still his shaking hands. Sora took them in his own, gently rubbing the backs of them with his thumbs.

"Hey, if you're too scared, we don't have to do this..."

"No, I really do want to! I'm just afraid of hurting you."

"Well, than just let me take over until you're comfortable with this." Sora cupped Riku's face with his hand and planted a soft but lingering kiss on his lips. His other hand had found it's way under his shirt, rubbing his back soothingly and working towards his chest.

Riku broke the kiss with a sharp gasp as Sora's hand found one of his nipples. He had taken it between two fingers and was now gently pinching and rubbing it between his fingers, creating a pleasurable sensation. Sora lowered his head and took the other one in his mouth, suckling and dragging his tongue over it.

"A-aah! S-sora, what are you d-doing?" The assault on his senses was proving too intense for Riku, who was beginning to hyperventilate. Sora lifted his head, alarmed, and wouldn't resume until he was breathing normally.

"Don't hold back your cries..." Sora said, taking two fingers and having Riku suck on them. "Let yourself _feel_ it, or you'll only send yourself into shock..." he removed his fingers after he was certain they were wet enough. "This might hurt a little, but I'll be as gentle as I can."

"What are you.. AAH!" Riku let out a yelp as one of Sora's fingers slipped into his body, closely followed by the second one. Riku started to shake violently as memories of what Xigbar did to him filled his mind.

"Breathe, Riku..." Sora said soothingly as he performed his ministrations, slowly scissoring his fingers and pushing them deeper into Riku's body, his other hand rubbing his knee reassuringly. He could feel the rough buildup of scar tissue along Riku's passage, a horrible reminder of what must be going through the older boy's mind right now. He spoke gentle reassurances while he worked. "I know it hurts, just breathe through it, it will stop hurting soon...there we are..."

Something had happened while he spoke: Riku's body had jerked involuntarily, and he saw white, a shrill cry of pleasure escaping from his lips. Sora smirked as he saw Riku writhing in front of him, knowing he had just found his friend's sweet spot. He ran his fingers over it a second time, earning another cry from Riku and confirming that he had found it.

"What...what did you just do?" Riku was still gasping as Sora slowly withdrew his fingers, cleaning them off on the sheets.

"I had to prep you..." Sora said gently. "That's what you need to do to make it less painful."

"I already... know that. But what did you do that made me feel...whatever that was just now?"

"I don't know..." Sora had disrobed himself while they spoke and was now positioning himself between Riku's legs, not wanting to startle the older boy when he entered him. "Hey, if this hurts too much, just tell me, I can end it right now." He said as he slowly slid himself in.

Surprisingly, it wasn't as painful as Riku was expecting, it was nothing like the pain Xigbar had inflicted, just the minor sting of being stretched farther than he was used to, and Sora seemed to favor slow contact, as his movements weren't fast and frenzied, but rather the right speed for both of them to feel pleasure but not so fast it could possibly inflict pain or injury. There were no pleas for mercy, no cries of pain, just the sounds of the two boys panting in unison.

"S-sora, I think I'm getting close..." Riku felt a sensation he could only describe as a coil slowly tightening in his lower abdomen. It was becoming painful, albeit in a different way. Sora was entering a frenzy, increasing the speed of his movement, and was more focused on keeping the rhythm of his own breathing in time with that of his thrusts, not wanting to pass out on Riku.

The only experience he had before this was by eavesdropping on his other friends' gossip, much like Riku had. So basically, they were both new to this and Sora was beginning to wonder if he had gone too far. But it was far too late to be questioning his morals at this point.

"So am I... I can feel it...AHHHH!" Sora let out a wild outcry as he hit his climax. Riku could feel his hot essence releasing deep inside him, triggering his own release.

"UHNNN, SO-RA!" His own essence quickly covered both their bodies, but neither party seemed to mind or even care at that point, as something else had stolen their attention.

"Ohhh nooo..." Riku had looked down shortly after Sora had withdrawn himself, alarmed to find several fresh bloodstains on the sheet. The activity had still left him wounded at the end. Maybe he was deformed after all.

"Hey, hey!" Sora had began to clean himself off using the bed sheets, which he knew would need to be changed out after that anyways, and had seen the look of alarm on Riku's face. He lifted him into a soft embrace, looking into his eyes intently. "It's all right, Nothings wrong with you- it's perfectly natural to bleed the first few times." He used the same sheet to clean the sticky mess off of Riku's chest and stomach, still trying to calm him as he did so.

"Sora..."

"Hmm?"

"I still have yet to see if that would help with the nightmares... but still- thank you. At least it offered a new perspective..."

"D-don't mention it..." Sora knew this was an incident that neither of them would speak of again. Bizarre though it was, both of them knew this was merely an act of comfort.

End of Chapter 22.


	23. Essence of Recklessness

Bait, Chapter 23

"What was I thinking?" Riku thought out loud to himself the following morning. He at least considered himself lucky that Sora did not pass out beside him after that... interlude... last night. But he still could not for the life of him figure out what had drove the two of them to do... that.

He swung his legs over the edge of the bed, taking careful steps. Though the pain wasn't as severe, his leg was hurting again, and he had left the salve Yen Sid had given him on a table across the room, meaning he'd have to walk to get it.

He was grateful that his leg did not buckle under him again during the short trip. Unscrewing the cap, he applied another layer of the medicine to his leg, noting that the bruises appeared to be lighter. He breathed in deeply as it took effect, and quickly noticed another thing. The instant he had detected the faint mint scent of the medicine, he felt a strange, fuzzy, sensation come over him.

_So that's what was going on. This salve must have affected both mine and Sora's senses in some way..._ Riku made a point to have words with Yen Sid about this. Covering the area with a bandage, he prayed the drug-like effects didn't absorb into the skin as well. Last thing he wanted was to go into a drug-induced seduction of Kairi, Lea, or- he shuddered at the idea- Mickey, Donald, or Goofy.

Sora seemed equally as embarrassed when they passed each other on the way to breakfast that morning. He blushed the instant he saw Riku, trying to stammer out an apology.

"R-riku... sorry about last night... I d-don't know what came over me..." His face went even redder and he lowered his head.

"I think I have an idea..." Riku explained what he had figured out that morning as the two of them walked toward the castle kitchens. Sora looked less embarrassed but still had a pink twinge to his cheeks when he spoke again.

"It's a shame. It took Master awhile to prepare that for you. I hope he can do something about that side-effect." He turned and headed toward the kitchens at a brisk pace, muttering something about how he was sure they'd let their breakfast get cold during the brief discussion.

XXXXXXXX

"You may enter..." came Yen Sid's voice from the other side of the door. Riku quietly entered the room they had prepared for the old wizard, immediately shocked to find that it was considerably smaller than the one they had put him in.

"I know what you're thinking..." Yen Sid said with an amused glint in his eye. "You're shocked that they saw fit to give King Mickey's teacher such a small room. Don't fret, I've gotten by with considerably less before, besides, considering the state you were in when we brought you here, you had much greater need of the fresh air and sunlight your room can give. But the matter of luxuries aside, what brings you here?" He motioned to one of the chairs by the window, taking a seat in one himself.

"I had a question about the salve you prepared for me. You see, Sora and I were exposed to it's fumes last night and something... strange... came over us..." He didn't go into details and prayed that Yen Sid didn't want any more.

The old man's brows furrowed, as though he was trying to remember something, when suddenly his eyes narrowed and he spoke.

"I'm guessing you found yourselves acting impulsively, against your better judgement?"

"Yes. What does it mean?"

"I see... one of the ingredients in that salve was the juice of a curious berry that grows in one of the outside worlds. The juice has properties as a potent topical painkiller, but if one were to inhale the vapor it emits... it would begin to inhibit certain activities in the brain, causing symptoms much like the ones you and Sora experienced. In high doses, one would enter such a dangerous state of recklessness that they would see themselves as infallible, causing them to engage in potentially life-threatening activities."

"So whatever Sora and I were feeling last night were feelings of... recklessness?"

"I apologize, Riku. Even in my old age, I am not immune to acts of ignorance. I had put such a small dose of the berry juice in the salve that I didn't think it would effect you in that manner, otherwise I would have warned you about it. All I can advise you to do now is to keep your leg bandaged while you're using that medicine, and if you do find it affecting your senses again, get to fresh air as soon as possible- it should help dissipate the effects."

"I'm already one step ahead of you..." Riku said with a smirk, lifting his pant leg to reveal the bandage beneath it. "As for the other thing, I'll keep it in mind should it happen again. Thank you for the advice, Master..."

End of Chapter 23.

A.N. Odd little plot twist? That an ingredient in a medicine would create a sense of recklessness so intense that it would drive Sora and Riku into a sexual act? I thought so too. I mentioned in another authors note that Sora was going to go on a vengeance quest, well *spoiler!* guess what helps drive him to that point? So no, this chapter was not a pointless interlude. Happy Reading!  
~Jade


	24. Firaga Bursts

Bait, Chapter 24.

"So basically what Yen Sid was saying... is that we can go back to the tower in Twilight Town after we get this over with?" Riku asked.

Yen Sid had declared Riku was healed enough to have his stitches removed yesterday. Of course, everyone seemed to be too busy to tend to the matter, what with their imminent departure as well as Queen Minnie's return from her own travels.

Riku never would have guessed that one day would allow him enough healing time to make the process of removing the stitches more painful than he would have preferred- even in the gentle hands of King Mickey, who Yen Sid had asked to do this while he attended to other affairs.

"Pretty much. He feels you all have been away from your training for far too long. And now there's threat of war on the horizon, so it's best to keep tabs on everyone."

The mouse was purposefully going slowly, trying to inflict as little pain as possible, but to Riku it seemed to make the discomfort drag on, until he nearly snapped at him to just yank them out. The mouse complied, snipping one of the threads with delicate looking scissors. Seizing one end of it with a tweezer, he yanked it out. Hard.

Riku had bitten his lip so hard it drew blood in effort to hold back a yelp. He had just learned the hard way why you don't question a medic. The force of the removal had caused the thread to tear right through his skin, leaving a short cut that was already welling with blood. It was a small enough wound that Mickey could close it with Cure, but that didn't make the pain any less prevalent.

"Why don't you use that stuff Yen Sid had used on him after he got those stitches?" Sora asked, looking away from what was going on. The sight of Riku's blood was stirring up memories of that awful procedure and making him feel ill as a result. The fact that Riku was now bleeding from the mouth after biting his lip so hard wasn't helping.

"That intincture was meant for open wounds and burns. Since Riku's wound is mostly healed, it wouldn't work. Perhaps you could give some of that salve Yen Sid made you a try."

"Perhaps..." Riku winced as Mickey slowly pulled another stitch from his chest. "But I think I'll wait till this is over with. Its only two more stitches."

"Fine. Just try to keep still while I remove them, or it will only hurt more. Sora, can you hand me the gauze on the other table? Sora?"

Sora's mind had gone elsewhere- to a full-blown flashback of several days earlier. He was watching Riku undergo the awful procedure of removing the blade fragment again. He could smell the blood, he could hear Riku screaming as the fragment emerged from his body. He could feel the terror and grief as he saw his best friend seem to die before his eyes, while Yen Sid's efforts to revive him nearly failed. And the relief he felt when he heard Riku speak his name for the first time in days...

"Sora?"

Sora jumped as Riku brought him out of his musings.

"Mickey just finished up, we can go back to what we were doing before..."

"Yes... What were we doing?"

"Practicing magic in the courtyard. Come on, maybe we can work in a little sparring between sessions..."

"That sounds good..."

XXXXXXXXX

"WHOA!" An awe-struck Kairi exclaimed. She had just witnessed the Firaga Burst, a fire spell that made Sora and Riku look as though they had summoned miniature suns that released fireballs from their Keyblades. Lea, who specialized in fire element, did not look impressed.

"Don't expect to get that one right away. Its fire in one of it's most advanced forms. I have just demonstrated that to show you how to make elements take on different forms. Some people, like Lea, have stronger traces of one element than others and will favor them, but we all have some quantity of the basic elements within us. We use mana to help shape those elements and give them form."

"Sounds like _someone _has had too much free time with Yen Sid." Lea muttered sarcastically about Riku's lecture on magical theory. Sora shot him a look, trying to take everything in so he wouldn't lose control like the last time he was in combat. But as the eldest in the group, Lea clearly resented having to call Riku "sensei."

"Ok, aim for the fountains when you cast your spells- we don't want to burn the gardens down! Use fire spells only." Riku divided them up, and was now giving advice to Kairi, who held Destiny's Embrace at arms length, a glowing orb of magic forming at it's end. Fire was not one of Kairi's strong suits.

"Hmmph! I'll show Mr. Keyblade Master he's not the only one here who's mastered fire magic!" Lea exclaimed bitterly, loud enough for Sora to hear.

"No, Lea! Don't do it!" Sora exclaimed, but it was too late. Lea had summoned a large Firaga Burst, one that was way too big to be easily controlled. It was quickly becoming unstable. Sora ducked behind a bush and crawled as far away from him as he could. Riku noticed the large, unstable mass of magic and instinctively shoved Kairi under the fountain jets.

"Lea, call it off! Release your magic!" Riku shouted at him, right as a ball of enchanted fire broke free and headed right for him.

End of Chapter 24


	25. Burning Admonishments

Bait, Chapter 25

Riku crossed his arms and shielded his face from the worst of the impact. The spell was powerful enough to knock him off his feet, as he felt the heat of the flames sear into his arms and chest, to be doused almost instantly by a deep but soothing chill.

Sora had cast blizzard over Riku to keep the burns from progressing, and immediately leapt on Lea, punching every exposed inch of him he could find while screaming at him about why he should have been listening to that lecture instead of sitting there muttering curses at his teacher.

Kairi had gotten up from where Riku pushed her and ran to his side with a cry. He had lowered his arms and Kairi was relieved to see that he was still conscious and alert. His arms did not guard his face from the full impact, and she could see some minor burns and scorch marks on his cheeks.

The rest of his upper body had borne the worst of the damage. The skin on his arms had turned bright red and had a shiny, blistered appearance, and she could see the same injuries through the holes the flames had burned in his tunic. He was clearly in pain, wincing with each intake of breath, tears running down his face from the effort of not letting Kairi watch him suffer.

"Will you two IMBECILES stop fighting and get Master Yen Sid down here, quickly!" Lea and Sora looked up, both of them sporting bloody noses, and the younger boy ran out of the courtyard as fast as his legs could carry him. Lea looked over to the scene before him, feelings of guilt swimming through his head. He had done this to Riku.

"See? This... is why... control... is important..." Riku admonished Lea between gasps.

"Try not to talk..." Lea said through gritted teeth. He went to the fountain they were near and filled a basin that had been sitting at it's edge with clean water from one of the jets. Going back to Riku, he slowly lathed it over the burns. The boy sighed, the cool water was soothing against his burning skin.

Sora returned with Yen Sid in tow. The old man was at Riku's side immediately, using a combination of Curaga and Blizzard to treat the burns. They all looked on with a mixture of awe and revulsion as new skin formed everywhere the wizard's hand touched, and after several minutes the only evidence of Lea's blunder were the scorched holes in Riku's clothing. Turning his attention off his charge, Yen Sid looked at Lea with a searing expression.

"I think several of us have tried to impress upon you four keyblade wielders how dangerous the magic arts are. Magic is not a toy or an ability to boast about! What if your spell had backfired worse than it just did? You could have killed everyone in this castle! I think a night of forced confinement might be necessary to make you see the seriousness of your actions..."

"Don't master! I think he's been punished enough already..." Riku exclaimed- noticing the bloody nose Lea still had from when Sora attacked him. Yen Sid just waved his hand and continued.

"And as for you Sora, I think some psychological training might be in order. Losing control of your temper like that can be dangerous in the wrong situation. Just think of how you lost control of your anger as well as your magic when you last fought Xigbar..." Sora hung his head, both in shame and because he didn't want to have _any _thoughts of Xigbar after what he did to Riku.

"Yes, that would be wise. It wouldn't do well to lose control and be killed. Not when you have other plans..."

End of Chapter 25.

A.N. The chapter's called "Burning admonishments..." pretty bad pun huh? Ok, anyone who's seen "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" scene in "Fantasia" knows how scary Yen Sid can be in his wrath. I wanted to get a moment of that in, because in Kingdom Hearts he comes across as more of a harmless mentor type- kinda boring! Also, many of you can already guess what these "Other plans" of Sora's are- the seed has been planted so to speak. The vengeance quest will begin within the next few chapters... Keep your eyes open!  
~Jade


	26. Planting the Seeds of Vengeance

Bait, Chapter 26.

The coming days found the group returning to Twilight Town and Yen Sid's tower, where training resumed with a new found intensity. Mornings and evenings would be dedicated to sparring sessions, when the air was coolest and least likely to wear them all out. Afternoons found them practicing magic or buried in the countless books Yen Sid had about history and magical theory. Even Lea was taking these lessons more seriously after that mishap in the courtyard of Disney Castle.

The last hour of daylight focused on Sora and the psychological training Yen Sid felt he needed. It involved putting him in an enchanted sleep as Yen Sid projected scenarios into his mind, closely watching how he reacted and giving advice and correction at the end.

Riku didn't particularly care for this method- it was too similar to the layered nightmare Organization 13 had put Sora in during the Mark of Mastery exam. But he didn't question it either, knowing no matter how intense the scenarios were- Yen Sid would not allow Sora to come to harm.

They had just finished one of these sessions, and though he didn't know the details of it, Riku had a pretty good idea what sort of scenario Yen Sid had subjected him to this time- watching a friend or comrade get hurt or killed. Most likely Yen Sid had used _him _as the subject, as Sora acted unusually clingy toward Riku afterward.

It was obvious Sora was deeply troubled during the evening's sparring session. He was distracted and hesitant in his fighting, and Riku kept defeating him in these makeshift duels. He even tried getting Sora's attention by using the same tact that had annoyed him greatly on the Destiny Islands all those years back-teasingly telling him that unless he defeated him this time, he would share a paopu fruit with Kairi. All that got him was a punch in the face followed by a very angry Sora storming back to the tower.

"Sora, wait. It was only a joke! SORA!" Riku ran to the tower in Sora's wake, only to find him crying quietly in the corner of the room.

"Sora?"

"I've... so nearly... lost you both... on so many occasions." Sora whispered. "Sometimes... All I want... Is for things to be back to the way they were before all this started. That comment... it brought back one of the last happy memories we had before all this started."

"Oh, Sora..." Riku was at a loss for words.

"I was so happy to finally find you again. I thought things were going to be normal again. But then all this happened. The Organization wants to rip us apart for their own ends! I almost saw you die right in front of me. I haven't been able to erase that image from my mind ever since!"

Riku grabbed Sora by the arm and lifted him so the two sat face to face. He felt something slip out of his pocket and shatter, but paid no mind to it. Pulling the younger boy closer to him, he embraced him and spoke reassuringly in his ear.

"Its alll right, Sora! I'm right here, we're both safe!" He felt Sora look up and push him away.

"Yeah, but for how long? The war is going to begin, sooner than any of us would like, and the Organization will track us down. They want me and most likely one more among us as a vessel for Xeanhort's heart. They have no problem striking down anyone who gets in their way and will stop at nothing to achieve their goals. It's either kill or be killed, and I most certainly will not allow my precious friends to get hurt on my account!"

"Sora... what are you saying?"

"I want them all gone, starting with the one who hurt you the worst in that dungeon!"

Riku couldn't believe what he was hearing. Sora- gentle, merciful Sora was speaking of becoming an avenger. Just how much had his best friend changed since the Mark of Mastery, or even since their journey as Keyblade wielders began?

"Do you realize what you're saying, Sora? This is what master Yen Sid has been training you for. If you lose control again, you could wind up hurting more than your opponent. And if you go off on your own to avenge us, nobody will be there to save you like last time!"

"It's a risk I'm prepared to take..."

"Don't do this Sora!"

"This is my decision, Riku. Stay out of it!" Sora stormed off- heading to his room in the tower, where Riku could hear the door slam shut.

_What on earth has gotten into him?_ Riku wondered. He stood up and made to retire to his own room for the night, when he heard something crunch under his foot. Looking down, he realized he had stepped on a piece of the object that had slipped from his pocket earlier.

"Oh Shit!" Riku's eyes widened when he saw exactly _what _he had just dropped.

It was the jar of salve Yen Sid had made him, which he had made a point of keeping on hand during sparring sessions in case his injured leg pained him again. It was the same stuff that clouded the mind if one was exposed to the fumes. Just how high of a dose had Sora received during that altercation?

End of Chapter 26


	27. Xigbar Returns

Bait, Chapter 27.

_I better get Sora outside before he does something drastic! _Riku thought as he ran full speed up the stairs and to Sora's room. He knocked on the door and quickly escalated to slamming on it while screaming his name when there was no answer. He finally had to resort to breaking the door down and finding a deserted bedroom. Sora had quickly packed away the few possessions he carried and had only left a note on the bed:

_To all my friends,_

_I have gone out to put an end to this once and for all. I do not want to just stand back and watch my best friends get hurt again, so I will be the one to take action this time. Don't wait up for me, I should not be long..._

_-Sora_

Riku clutched the letter so hard it had began to tear. _Sora, you idiot!_ He had just lectured him about not doing this, when he remembered something Yen Sid had warned him about the salve:

_"In high doses, one would enter such a dangerous state of recklessness that they would begin to see themselves as infallible, causing them to engage in potentially life-threatening activities..."_

_This is all my fault! _Riku thought mournfully. He didn't know how long it would take such a high dose to wear off, but he prayed the fresh air would help Sora come to his senses quickly and return to them.

Nonetheless, he felt it important to let Yen Sid and the others know what had just happened.

XXXXXXXX

Sora stood outside one of the deserted shops in Twilight Town. Everyone had gone home for the night, making the streets dark, quiet, and a perfect place to collect his thoughts. He honestly had no idea what had come over him. Riku was just trying to help him cope, when suddenly the familiar protective rage came over him again.

"Maybe I should go back and apologize..." Sora thought out loud.

"Now why would you wanna go and do that? It's obvious that the wizard and the brats you train with don't deserve an apology..." The owner of the mysterious voice had apparated so swiftly yet quietly behind Sora that he didn't realize he was there until he could feel the man breathing down his neck. "I mean, Riku defended Lea but let Yen Sid tell you off for beating him up after he burned him..."

"Have you been stalking me!?" Sora turned around quickly, keyblade in hand, and got a better look at his sudden companion. The man was thinner and more ragged than the last time they crossed paths, and he was sporting more scars, many of them were of Sora's own making. But he still recognized him, and the fiery seeds of rage blossomed in Sora's heart upon sight.

"You... YOU'RE GONNA PAY FOR WHAT YOU DID TO RIKU!" Sora charged at the man, driven forward by pure rage, and swung his keyblade at his chest- the exact same area where Riku had been stabbed.

Xigbar just summoned his own weapon and used it to knock the keyblade aside, and struck Sora hard in the stomach with his free hand. Sora was knocked backward from the force of the blow, and Xigbar acted quickly, using the moment Sora was stunned to bind his wirsts with black cords.

"No, wait! What do you want with me? Why don't you just kill me, your sadistic plans would be met so much faster!"

"Oh don't worry your naive little head about that. I _will _kill you after all this, but I wanna have a little fun first!" Xigbar answered, fastening Sora's bonds so tightly that Sora could feel his hands going numb. "Might as well make you feel what I have had to feel these past months! And we can start right here..."

Xigbar siezed a thin razor-like blade from the remnants of his cloak and slowly, excruciatingly, ran the blade down Sora's cheek, leaving a deep bloody track to match one of the fresh scars on Xigbar's face. Sora did not hold back like Riku did, he started to scream the moment the blade touched his face, and Xigbar took a sadistic pleasure in the sound.

At that exact moment in Yen Sid's tower, Riku suddenly fell into a strange fit. He suddenly stiffened and seemed to stare wide-eyed into nothingness. He came out of it in a short time and spoke quickly.

"It's Sora. Somebody is torturing him." Riku looked genuinely frightened, but Mickey seemed to understand.

"It's the connection they share..." Mickey told Yen Sid. "I'm pretty sure Sora is calling to Riku as we speak."

"Can we hurry? We might be able to get to him if we set out right now!" Kairi exclaimed, looking genuinely frightened.

"But we don't even know where to go!" Yen Sid answered.

"Yes we do..." Riku had gone into another of those bizarre fits, and Mickey noticed something about it that the others must not have.

"Riku, did Sora say anything to you about his whereabouts?" Riku shook his head.

"No, but I keep getting this strange feeling..." He stretched out his arm, pointing at something outside the window. "Like I need to be in Twilight Town right now."

"I see..." Yen Sid stared at him, deep in thought. "Is this the first time this has happened to you?"

"I can't remember..."

"I've never seen a connection this strong before... To be able to sense a persons feelings is one thing, but to be able to discern their location is something entirely different. It's as though your hearts run on the same wavelengths or something like that, so whatever one feels, the other can detect. It just may explain a lot of things about you two..."

End of Chapter 27.

A.N: Ok, the title of this chapter alone should be enough to raise some "Oh Shit!" flags among the readers- as every time I feature Xigbar in this fic bad things happen. But he's back, he's obviously either deserted or been kicked from the Organization(I haven't decided which yet), and he's more unstable than ever. Expect some gore in the coming chapters.  
Also, there are two sources to explain the whole "resonating hearts" thing between Sora and Riku. First there's Chain of Memories- Riku woke up in Castle Oblivion and clearly had no idea how he got there- however in one cutscene we hear an Organization member- Zexion I think- if it was someone else please correct me, its been a long time since i played COM- but anyway we hear Zexion say that Riku's heart reacted with Sora's and had somehow led him to that location. And the other was none other than Dream Drop Distance... The game is FULL of suggestions that Sora and Riku share a connection of some sort.


	28. Role Reversal

Bait, Chapter 28

_Hang in there, Sora._ Riku thought desperately as he raced through the streets of Twilight Town with Kairi, Lea, and Mickey behind him, all looking and listening intently for any suspicious activities. The streets were quiet and deserted, the only sounds were crickets chirping and the occasional meow from a stray cat.

They were in the Station Plaza when the awful sound rent the air. It was a boy's scream, and it sounded horribly familiar.

"SORA!" Riku shouted out and ran toward the source of the noise, where he found Sora lying on the street in a growing puddle of blood. Lifting Sora into a sitting position, he cast cure over all the wounds, stopping the bleeding.

"Sora, come on, wake up! Who did this to you? Sora!" The boy stirred softly then looked at Riku with wide, terrified eyes.

"Riku, behind you!"

"The kid must have quite a mouth on him to be capable of alerting you three to his side!"

That voice. Riku's stomach began to churn from simply hearing that voice. Turning around, he saw _him._ Riku began to back away, eyes wide with recognition.

"No, not you! Anyone but you!"

Xigbar casually walked past Riku, more intent on his current prey. He roughly grabbed Sora by the arm and opened a dark corridor behind them.

"Let go of me! Riku! Help!" Xigbar slipped a hand over the struggling boy's mouth and began to drag him to the portal.

"Shut up! I'm taking you to a place where nobody will be able to hear your wretched cries for help. You can scream and plead to your heart's content. Nobody will listen!" Xigbar grinned evilly and disappeared into the portal with Sora in tow.

Riku, still frozen by fear, watched helplessly as his best friend was dragged away from them, when a new, strong resolve washed over him. He had precious few seconds before the portal closed and separated the two of them again. He would not let that happen. Standing up and running at a brisk pace, Riku ran straight into the portal, where he could hear his other comrades scream for him to come back before the portal closed and hid them from view.

He reappeared in a small, dark room that looked like it had not been inhabited for years. Sora was tied up in a corner, wide-eyed and frightened, with Xigbar leaning over him preparing to inflict more pain on him.

"Let him go!" Riku snarled at him. Xigbar jumped up and stared coldly at Riku.

"You... You're going to regret choosing to meddle..." Apparating behind him, Xigbar struck quickly and savagely at his head with one of his weapons. He heard Sora screaming desperately at Xigbar "Leave him alone! Don't hurt him!" before he blacked out.

End of Chapter 28.

A.N. Short chapter, I know, but the story will progress back to it's longer, more detailed chapters soon.


	29. The Pain of a Broken Heart

A.N. Warning, there is gore in this chapter!

Bait, Chapter 29

"I had an extra special payback in mind for what you did to Demyx..."

"Please...nooo..."

Riku woke up listening to snippets of Xigbar's gloating threats, to find that he was shirtless and tied up with his wrists suspended over his head. Looking toward the source of the noises, what he saw was indeed a horrible sight.

Xigbar was trying to strip Sora naked, but was having trouble from the combination of his attempts to fight him off and the countless belts and buckles that made up Sora's outfit. He was getting ready to violate him in the same manner Riku had been in the dungeons, and Riku wouldn't stand for it. Looking everywhere around him for something, _anything _that could be used to help him escape and fight off Xigbar before he went too far.

He found nothing, and was forced to watch helplessly as Xigbar succeeded in getting Sora's clothing off. But the boy was still fighting- he had positioned his body in such a way that Xigbar couldn't get anywhere near his nether regions without leaving himself open for a swift kick.

Not that Xigbar noticed or cared. An attempt to pry Sora's legs apart earned him his first counterattack. Sora's foot made swift and powerful contact with his chin, sending him flying backwards. Xigbar got up and punched Sora in the mouth in retaliation, and he got his second comeback: a swift kick between the legs.

"UHNNNN!" Xigbar hit the ground, doubled over in pain and clutching at the area Sora just kicked. He remained like this for several minutes, before he rose up, seething. He drew out a thin razor and proceeded to walk to Sora, waving it threateningly.

"Nuh-uh, shouldn't do that. Now I'll have to punish you!"

Riku was once again forced to watch helplessly as Xigbar prepared to torture Sora again. He had the razor positioned right over Sora's heart, and was beginning to slowly press it into his flesh. Sora began to cry- he was in pain and terrified. Riku felt he could bear the worst tortures this sadistic individual had planned far better than to watch Sora suffering like this.

"STOP!" Both Sora and Xigbar froze at the voice. Riku spoke again.

"Please, Take me, do whatever you want to me! Just please leave Sora alone!"

Xigbar turned around and grinned that same sadistic grin Riku saw him use so many times during his confinement.

"Sora, you're a lucky kid. Riku here just said he is willing to take everything I had planned for you as well as what's in store for him..."

_Don't paraphrase my words, you bastard!_

"I guess it's time to see just how good a friend Riku is to you... If he truly cares about you, he'll keep his will intact long enough to endure _everything. _However, if he dies before I have had my fill... you will get double what was remaining. So hold out Riku, your best friend's life just might depend on it!"

Xigbar closed the distance between the two of them in few steps. Riku knew what was coming, again. He closed his eyes and tried to relax, like last time, but his heart was racing.

Pain and surprise met Riku as he felt a deep, stabbing pain in his chest. Xigbar was not preparing to violate him again. He had something else in mind.

"You brats ever experience heartbreak before? It's unbearable isn't it?" Xigbar joked as he widened the cut on Riku's chest and plunged his hand right in, breaking two of his ribs as his hand thrust past them. "It feels sort of like... having your heart torn out from your body!" His hand found the frantically beating organ and began to enclose his hand around it. Riku let out a gurgling cry and slumped forward.

"NO! STOP IT! YOU'RE KILLING HIM!" Sora frantically struggled against his bonds, trying in vain to escape.

XXXXXXXX

_So this is how it all ends. Xigbar cheated, and I think he planned it that way. Please forgive me, Sora. I won't be able to save you... he felt himself falling into deep, endless blackness. _

_Most people claim that in your final moments, you see your entire life flash before your eyes. Riku saw nothing, but he felt a deep, crushing pain deep within, the pain of several emotions competing for hold on his mind. Guilt, shame, terror, loss. He felt, deep down, that he was responsible for this._

_"Riku?"_

_The voice broke through the black abyss, then faded back to silence._

_"Come on, Riku. You don't need to endure this alone. Let me help you..." he felt warm, strong hands encasing him, pulling him away from the blackness._

_But Riku couldn't accept it. He couldn't allow himself to be free of the pain he had just forced Sora to bear. The form of his replica appeared in front of him, looking at him with an urgent intensity._

_"You're both going to be fine, trust me! Come, let me help!" The replica held out his hand, and Riku, though hesitantly, accepted it._

XXXXXXXX

Riku had not made another sound after that one awful cry. Sora continued to struggle against his bonds until he felt them loosen around his wrists, allowing him to slip free and summon his Keyblade. Xigbar was too intent upon his prey to notice.

"Why don't you scream, you little brat? I couldn't seem to get you to shut up in the dungeons..." He savagely slapped Riku across the face, and Sora noticed with revulsion that the bulge in his chest where Xigbar's hand was had constricted even more. He was trying to crush Riku's heart in his hand.

"Let him go!" Sora snarled. Xigbar ignored him, enjoying the feeling of power, having complete control over whether this pathetic child lived or died. With a protective growl, Sora charged at the man.

"I said to let him go, you bastard!" Xigbar did not notice the sudden closeness of Sora's voice until it was too late. He had looked around just as Sora savagely swung his Keyblade at his neck, breaking it on impact. Xigbar slumped to the ground, dead. Sora ran to Riku and saw with horror that Xigbar's hand was still plunged inside his chest.

Knowing Riku's life was being cut short every second that Xigbar's vice-like grip remained on him, and that he was the only one who was there to do this, Sora stifled a gag as he reached inside the bloody cavity as gently as he could manage and pried the mans hand off the still-beating heart. Riku was still alive, but he didn't know how much longer he would be without medicine. Pulling his clothes back on, Sora cut Riku's bond's free and carefully laid him on the floor, using the few medical supplies he brought to clean and bind the deep gash on his chest.

Riku had not made a single response, though he appeared to be conscious. His eyes were open, but they seemed to stare at nothing. He was in shock, and Sora did not know how severe it was. Try to move him at the wrong time and it could shorten his life even more.

Once Sora was sure he was stable enough, he lifted Riku and carried him over his shoulder and out of that awful dwelling. Despite knowing Riku was unable to answer, Sora spoke to him as though he were awake anyway.

"Come on, let's get out of here..."

End of Chapter 29


	30. A Thin Grip on Sanity

Bait, Chapter 30

They were in Hollow Bastion. Sora recognized the place the instant they stepped out into the light. It must have been mid morning- had they really been in Xigbar's clutches for that short a time? It felt like an eternity. He got a firmer grip on Riku, who was riding piggyback on Sora. The boy was so tall that his feet nearly dragged on the ground. He had not stirred at all since they escaped.

"Come on, I know people here, they'll get you some help..."

Talking to Riku as though he were awake and could actually hear him was the one thing keeping the fine line of Sora's sanity intact. He had just been through severe torture and on top of that, he nearly saw his best friend's heart get torn out. Riku was alive but in shock from blood loss, and if he didn't get care soon, he would not last much longer.

Sora could barely make out small figures on the other side of the gorge they were standing near. He waved his free hand frantically and shouted for help. Whoever it was didn't hear him, but something else did.

They always came out of nowhere, and even after years of fighting them, the suddenness of their arrival would still startle him. Heartless- only Shadows, but several of them. He laid Riku on the ground and summoned his Keyblade, fighting off the waves of them that kept jumping at him. Several others swarmed around Riku, viewing him as easy prey. They were gone within minutes, and Sora felt more drained than ever. Crawling back to Riku, he lifted him again, making his way cautiously down the edge of the gorge.

"We have to keep going. You can do it, just hold on..." Sora continued to encourage the sleeping boy slumped over his shoulders, but he didn't answer. Sora himself was getting weaker by the moment.

"Just a little farther..."

"We're almost there..."

In the end, it was more than Sora could handle. He swayed in exhaustion, falling to his knees, taking care not to let Riku get hurt even in his own weakened state. He let the older boy just fall off his back when he was sure he was at a safe enough height, as he too fell face down in the dirt.

XXXXXXXX

The next few days seemed to fade in and out. He could remember some of his waking moments more vividly than others.

He remembered feeling the sharp sting of somebody cleaning and stitching the wounds on his face and chest.

On another occasion, he had woken to find a woman trying to coax him to drink some broth.

He remembered waking up in a panic, screaming Riku's name after a nightmare.

He could recall with especially horrible clarity seeing a group of people huddled around Riku's bed, trying desperately to revive him. He would later be told that his heart had stopped on three other occasions as they attempted to repair the damage Xigbar inflicted. He had so nearly lost his best friend again.

Next time he came to, he found that he was lying on a soft bed in a stark white room. He looked around desperately, trying to find Riku in these unfamiliar surroundings. He found him lying on another bed near the window of the same room, surrounded by people, some he knew, some he didn't recognize. He could barely make out what they were saying.

"...condition has stabilized, but he's still not responding..."

"...don't think he's still in shock, do you?"

"...whatever went on on with them might have broken his mind..."

Sora bolted upright in his bed.

"What's going on?" The others in the room turned to look at him, and he could spot Leon , Yuffie, and Aerith among those gathered.

"We wanted to ask one of you the same question. Leon and Cloud found you two lying in the gorge about three days ago. You were badly wounded, and nobody could figure out why you were so far from your training."

"Kidnapped... a former Organization 13 member brought me here, and Riku chased after him... Wait... what about Riku? Is he okay?" Concern turned to panic when they all exchanged dark glances.

"He'll make it. In fact, he improves dramatically every day. But every effort to get him to respond gets the same result. It's as though his heart and mind have completely deserted him. We've summoned your master here to see if anything can be done to reverse this, but the fear in the matter is... even if his body completely recovers, Riku may never wake up..."

End of Chapter 30


	31. The Ruins of Riku's Heart

Bait, Chapter 31

"It's as though Riku's heart is sleeping..." Yen Sid said after briefly entering a meditative state. It was only him, Sora, Mickey, and Riku in the room. "I can still sense him, but he is hidden away, deep within his own psyche. We might be looking at another mission like when Organization 13 trapped Sora's heart in darkness."

"But master! Are any of us even capable of enduring the darkness in Riku's heart? He is the only individual that knows how to handle it."

"I could do it... I've taken on every form of darkness that has possessed or fought against Riku, and I still remember that double-nightmare the Organization put me through. I think I can handle it!"

"Sora. I really think it would be better if you didn't..."

"Please. I want to prove myself, and I want to be there for him like he was for me."

The old wizard sighed."I feel for you, Sora. But you should know all too well by now that if you were to fail, you would only succeed in getting lost in the darkness yourself."

"Than at least he wouldn't be alone..." Sora said sadly. "He's been... I keep thinking it's my fault that he's suffered so much in the past few years."

Mickey walked to Sora's side, putting a supportive hand on his shoulder. "I have faith in you. In fact, I think you are the one best suited to do this. Because of the strength of the connection you two share, you just might be able to find him in the deepest folds of his heart. And if anything goes wrong, I'll be right there to bring you both back. Go, Sora. We'll be waiting for both of you right here."

Sora gave a parting nod to Yen Sid and Mickey, then summoned his Keyblade and aimed it at Riku. A strong glow issued around both his and Sora's body, and a portal formed beside him, which seemed to draw Sora's spirit into it. The glow faded, the portal disappeared, and Sora collapsed, Yen Sid catching him before he hit the ground and lowering him gently.

"There he goes. You're absolutely sure he'll be able to do it?" Yen Sid asked.

"Positive. You haven't witnessed their bond in action as much as I have."

XXXXXXXX

Sora had somehow been teleported to the Destiny Islands. _No,_ he thought to himself. _Riku's memories of the Destiny Islands. _As he explored more of the world, he noticed something... odd about it. The world seemed to be broken yet slowly becoming whole again with each passing moment. It was dawn, the sky becoming brighter at the same pace the world was being repaired.

"What is going on?" Sora wondered out loud, taking in more of the surroundings, when he saw it.

Riku, suspended in a sphere of seawater, fast asleep. Sora summoned his Keyblade and prepared to free his friend from his prison of water, when somebody else grabbed him by the arm before he could land his blow.

"Wait Sora, not so fast!" The voice sounded so familiar, yet he couldn't believe it, as the owner of the voice was currently sleeping in that sphere of water. He spun around and a look of shock registered on his face.

"RIKU?"

The figure standing before him shook his head. "No, just a replica."

End of Chapter 31.


	32. Kodomorashi Riku

Bait, Chapter 32

"So it's true then, the heart of his Replica continues to live on inside him!"

"Yes... It is true. He has been a generous host..."

"What's going on with Riku?" Sora asked, motioning wildly to the sphere of water his best friend was sleeping in. "Why's he in there? Won't he drown?"

The replica just started to laugh. Sora looked at him, dumbfounded.

"He's not going to drown because he technically isn't in there. The boy in that sphere is just a manifestation of Riku's heart, and everything around him is just a manifestation of his memories!" The replica began to weave a long tale of how this all came to be.

"I found him drifting in the darkest abyss of his memories. He was a wreck, his heart was beginning to shatter before my eyes. He blamed himself for everything you had just been subjected to and were about to endure more of. He was also in severe physical and emotional pain, and the strain of his guilt was nearly too much for his heart to bear. It was lucky I found him, and also lucky I discovered this interesting trait about his memories."

"What trait?" Sora interrupted.

"Memories of his home and childhood have a strange nurturing effect on the heart. If one was to wade into the waters of this island, they would find that their burdens would seem to melt away. I don't think he was aware of this himself, and I had discovered it on accident."

The replica's face clouded over, and Sora could see hints of pain and betrayal in his eyes.

"When I was murdered by Xigbar, though my body was no longer useful, my heart continued to live on. But it was slowly breaking. I have had an unbearable life, and the manner it had ended was not pleasant either. I knew I would just fade away if I didn't find a body and soul to keep my heart alive. I decided to return to Riku, my origin, and found that there was more to him than meets the eye. I had found my way to this part of his memories, and had discovered the nurturing effects of his childhood memories."

"So all of this... you think it could repair a broken heart?"

"Maybe it's just exclusive to me and my origin... but I won't discredit the effects. Look at him, he looks content, doesn't he?"

Sora got a good look at Riku deep within the sphere. His body was relaxed, and his face had a gentle smile on it. For the first time in a long time, he looked... serene, like there was nothing to care about in the world.

"How long will he be like this?"

"That is up to him. But I don't think it will be much longer now. He has a strong heart. I should know- we're the same person after all."

"No, you're not the same..." Sora began. "You may have a lot in common, but you're not the Riku I know... You seem... more childlike, more naive."

The Replica laughed again. "Well, perhaps I was formed mostly from his childhood memories!"

"Perhaps. So what should I do about him?"

"Go home, tell your master that he's safe and in good hands, and should wake up in a couple days. He's just sleeping until his heart is healed."

Sora got up, looking at the sky. It was already much lighter than when he arrived. The world was already nearly whole again. Stepping into the water, he too felt a renewal of heart, and summoned his Keyblade, aiming it at the sky, as the same deep, resonating glow as before formed around him.

He turned and faced the replica again. "I think I have a nickname for you, so I don't confuse you two should I ever need to come here again!"

Smiling, the replica spoke up: "Let's hear it then!"

Sora grinned mischievously. "Kodomorashi-Riku.*" Both of them began to laugh as he vanished from that world.

End of Chapter 32

*Kodomorashi 子どもらしい:Japanese: Childlike or innocent.


	33. Awakening

Bait, Chapter 33.

Sora woke up in the real world, the images of Riku's broken psyche still fresh in his thoughts. And the replica, who he had nicknamed "Kodomorashi," that was still standing guard, making sure Riku's broken heart mended properly. It was a lot to take in.

"Sora!" Mickey ran to his side, looking at the boy intently.

"Riku's heart has broken..." Sora began. "And his replica is doing everything he can to heal him. But he said whether he wakes up or not depends entirely on him. He thinks Riku will wake up soon, but what do you think? He's been through far too much!" Yen Sid held a hand out to silence him.

"Shhh. Don't overexcite yourself, you're still recovering too." He began. "So the replica has been acting as a healer to him. How did he learn how to mend a broken heart?"

"He said he'd found the most nurturing part of Riku's memories, and I too could feel their effects while I was in there. It was as though every negative thought and emotion I ever felt had washed away." Everyone in the room looked at Sora, shocked.

"A manifestation of purest light..." Yen Sid exclaimed. "Like he holds a tiny piece of Kingdom Hearts deep within himself."

Sora turned and looked at Riku after that remark. He had the same peaceful expression on his face that the projected image of his heart had. Did he really hold such a pure light within himself, even if it was a tiny piece?

"This generation of Keyblade wielders never ceases to amaze me! That must be why Riku can use darkness without consequences- because he has that light to help keep it in check!" Mickey said in awe.

XXXXXXXX

Sora kept a constant vigil at Riku's side, like he did when he was so sick after his confinement. His condition was drastically different from that time however. He was in perfect health save the bandaged wound near his heart and the fact that he wouldn't wake.

Aerith came in towards the end of the day to change both his and Riku's bandages and check up on their condition. Sora panicked when he saw what else she had brought with her.

"Oh, don't be a baby!" The woman exclaimed as she stuck a needle full of... something into Sora's arm. "I'm sorry that we don't have your master's knowledge of magic or potions, but after we heard the full story of how you got those injuries, we thought it was necessary." Her expression turned sympathetic and she said matter-of-factly: "It's far better than a slow, painful death from infection!"

Sora rubbed his arm and looked at Aerith sourly as she did the same thing to Riku. "And just what was this 'necessity?'"

She didn't answer, as she noticed that- after nearly 5 days- she had finally gotten a reaction from Riku. He had felt the sting of the needle and let out a soft wince.

"I think he's starting to come around!" she exclaimed. Sora let go of his sulky demeanor and rushed to his friend's side, taking his hand and squeezing it tightly, trying to get another reaction from him.

Though he slept on, Sora noticed that Riku's hand tightened around his, reminding him of how Riku had let him know he was okay after nearly dying in that harrowing procedure.

"Come on, you can do it!" Sora whispered encouragingly to him. Riku's eyes opened, and he looked around the room, confused.

"Where am I?" he asked.

"A makeshift ward in Hollow Bastion..." Aerith answered. "You two gave us a bit of a scare, but you both seem to be ok now..."

"How're you feeling?" Sora asked.

"Much better. I know what happened during my absence, and I am grateful. Also, Kodomorashi-Riku wanted me to say hello..."

Sora began to laugh, as Riku wore an amused smirk.

"You really saw him as childlike?"

"Yes. He seemed more innocent and a bit confused, kind of like a child..."

"Well... Sora, I don't think even he knew about his full origins. It could very well be that he was formed from my childhood memories..."

"He told me the same thing..." Sora agreed. "But, child or not, I am now convinced you have a strong ally."

"Yes. Even if it is just to keep my sanity in check..."

End of Chapter 33


	34. The Promise

Bait, Chapter 34

They were sent back to Yen Sid's tower about two days after Riku awoke, bearing advice and blessings from those who were close to them.

Sora had a lighter heart now, knowing his best friend was safe and had a spiritual protector. Riku still had a hard time grasping the idea that he held such a pure light within himself. There were still hints of self-doubt deep within, and he hardly considered himself "pure," not after he betrayed his friends all those years ago.

They all knew things would no longer be so simple. With the knowledge that they had, any one of the keyblade wielders could be targeted- Mickey being a king and Keyblade master, Kairi being a princess of heart, Sora being a perspective vessel, Riku a being of pure light holding a separate yet equally powerful darkness, and Lea being a former Organization member.

So the few moments they did have just to sit back and be themselves were treated with the utmost reverence Who knows how many more chances they would have to do that before the war began.

Ironically, those moments between Sora and Riku were spent sparring, not with Keyblades, not to train. But using wooden staves, for the sake of enjoyment. Like all those times on the Destiny Islands when they were younger.

One of these sessions found Sora pinning Riku to the ground, the end of his stave aimed at his neck.

"You just might finally be getting the hang of this!" Riku exclaimed, grinning mischievously as Sora withdrew the makeshift weapon and held a hand out to his friend, helping him to his feet.

"Can't depend on you to save me every time, can I?" Sora answered, wearing an equally mischievous grin.

The two of them ended the sparring sessions the way they always did on the islands- by abandoning the staves and laying back to watch the clouds. Though there were fewer clouds here, the view was more surreal and breathtaking.

"Hey, Riku?"

"Hmm?"

"You think we'll ever get to do things like this again? I mean, after the war..."

"It's hard to tell. I may talk to a spirit occasionally, but I'm no clairvoyant... If I could see the future, I would've stopped myself in my tracks so many times..."

"I just hope nothing happens to us, to tear us apart forever." Sora said sadly.

"Sora... Listen to me. Even if something were to happen, and me, Kairi, or the others could no longer be there, we'd still find a way."

Sora turned over, looking at Riku with a curious expression.

"If we have to, we'll think of something else!" Riku smiled coyly at the reminder of that first adventure. "I would stay by your side as long as you need me, even if it's for an eternity."

"That a promise?"

Riku turned to look back at Sora, his eyes holding a most sincere expression.

"You can hold me to it."

The End.


End file.
